THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 
OF  CALIFORNIA 

PRESENTED  BY 

PROF.  CHARLES  A.  KOFOID  AND 
MRS.  PRUDENCE  W.  KOFOID 


A  Monograph  of  the  TBINGEJE  of  North  America. 
BY   ELLIOTT   COUES. 

In  the  latter  part  of  1860,  during  the  examination  at  the  Smithsonian 
Institution  of  an  extensive  and  valuable  collection  of  birds  made  by  Messrs. 
Robert  Kennicott  and  Bernard  R.  Ross  in  the  vicinity  of  Great  Slave  Lake  and 
McKenzie's  River,  my  attention  was  directed  to  a  Sandpiper,  nearly  allied  to 
Actodromas  maculata  and  Bonapartei,  but  differing  from  both  in  many  important 
features.  Subsequent  examination  having  proved  it  to  be  without  doubt  dis- 
tinct from  these,  or  any  other  North  American  Sandpipers,  I  was  authorized  by 
the  Secretary  of  the  Institution  to  describe  and  name  it.  To  do  so  properly, 
necessarily  involving  a  somewhat  extended  study  of  the  North  American 
Sandpipers,  I  was  induced  to  undertake  a  monographic  sketch  of  the  section, 
as  well  as  of  the  particular  genus  to  which  the  new  species  belongs. 

In  the  following  pages  it  has  been  attempted  to  present  the  leading  features 
of  the  group ;  to  give  the  diagnosis  of  the  several  genera  and  species,  with  a 
detailed  description  when  such  appeared  necessary ;  together  with  the 
synonymy  of  each  species  and  a  discussion  of  doubtful  points  of  nomenclature 
and  affinity.  In  how  far,  however,  this  aim  has  been  accomplished,  must  be 
left  for  others  to  judge. 

It  is  with  great  diffidence  that  on  some  points  I  dissent  from  such  high 
authority  as  that  of  the  author  of  the  Tringece  in  the  General  Report ;  but 
when  compelled  to  do  so,  the  reasons  are  fully  stated,  which,  it  is  hoped,  will 
be  found  satisfactory. 

To  Professor  Henry,  Secretary  of  the  Smithsonian  Institution,  my  grateful 
acknowledgments  are  due  for  the  opportunity  of  examining  at  leisure  the 
entire  Smithsonian  collection  of  Sandpipers,  and  also  for  access  to  those  works 
necessary  to  the  compilation  of  the  list  of  synonyms.  The  references  have  all 
been  personally  made  and  verified,  except  in  a  few  cases  for  which  the  au- 
thority is  given.  Though  the  list  is  necessarily  incomplete,  it  is  believed  that 
no  important  synonym  is  omitted.  Should,  however,  errors  be  detected  in 
this  or  in  any  other  portion  of  the  article,  it  is  hoped  that  they  will  be  found 
to  be  others  than  those  of  negligence  or  carelessness. 

By  many  modern  ornithologists  the  Sandpipers  are  considered  as  a  sub- 
family Tringince  of  Scolopacidce,  equal  in  rank  to  the  Scolopacince  and  Totanince. 
But  the  relationships  of  the  two  former  in  all  essential  points  are  very  inti- 
mate, and  the  transition  from  the  one  to  the  other,  through  such  genera  as 
Macroramphus  and  Micropalama,  very  gradual,  while  at  the  same  time  the 
differences  from  the  Totanince  are  marked  and  decided.  In  view  of  these  con- 
siderations, it  may  be  more  natural  to  consider  the  Sandpipers  as  a  section 
of  Tringece  of  equal  rank  with  Scolopacece,  uniting  both  under  the  subfamily 
Scolopacince.  Upon  this  basis  the  different  groups  may  be  distinguished  by 
the  following  brief  characters,  taken  chiefly  from  the  General  Report. 

[July, 


NATURAL   SCIENCES   OF   PHILADELPHIA.  171 

Family  SCOLOPACID^. 

Bill  variable  in  length,  but  at  least  as  long  as  the  head,  grooved  to  beyond 
the  middle.  Legs  with  transverse  scntellse  before  and  behind,  (except  in 
Numenieaz.)  Toes  not  broadly  margined  to  the  tips,  with  or  without  a  basal 
web.  Hind  toe  generally  present. 

Scolopacinos.  Bill  covered  with  soft  skin  to  the  sensitive,  vascular,  usually 
more  or  less  laterally  expanded  tip.  Gape  of  mouth  very  small,  not  extending 
beyond  the  base  of  the  culinen.  Bare  portion  of  tibiae  short.  Legs  generally 
rather  short  and  stout.  Toes  usually  cleft  to  the  base.  Body  stout,  neck 
rather  short. 

Totanince.  Bill  covered  with  soft  skin  only  towards  the  base,  the  terminal 
portion  being  hard,  horny,  and  usually  unexpanded  and  attenuated.  Grape  of 
moutli  considerable,  extending  beyond  the  base  of  the  culmen.  Tibiae  bare 
for  a  considerable  distance.  Legs  slender  and  lengthened.  Toes  usually  with 
a  basal  web. 

Subfamily  SCOLOPACIN.E. 

Scolopacece.  Bill  much  longer  than  the  head  or  naked  leg,  extremely  sen- 
sitive. Upper  mandible  with  a  longitudinal  furrow  near  the  end,  and  its  tip 
thickened  and  bent  down  over  the  lower.  Roof  of  mouth  not  excavated  to 
the  tip.  External  ear  beneath  or  anterior  to  the  eye.  Tail  usually  banded. 

Tringece.  Bill  shorter  than  the  naked  leg,  the  tip  less  sensitive  than  in  the 
preceding,  more  or  less  laterally  expanded,  but  not  thickened.  Roof  of  mouth 
excavated  to  the  tip.  Culmen  without  a  decided  longitudinal  groove.  Ex- 
ternal ear  posterior  to  the  eye.  Tail  usually  without  bands. 

The  preceding  diagnoses  indicate,  in  a  general  way,  the  principal  characters 
of  the  several  groups,  and  distinguish  the  Tringece.  The  latter,  at  least  as  far 
as  North  American  forms  are  concerned,  may  be  thus  more  definitely  charac- 
terized. 

The  bill  is  straight  or  slightly  decurved,  at  least  as  long  as  the  head,  and 
sometimes  considerably  exceeding  it;  rather  slender,  usually  more  or  less 
compressed,  seldom  much  depressed.  The  tip  is  usually  more  or  less  ex- 
panded, and  sensitive  and  vascular,  that  of  the  upper  mandible  bent  a  little 
over  that  of  the  lower.  The  grooves  in  both  mandibles  extend  to  the  expan- 
sion of  the  tip  ;  that  of  the  upper  is  much  the  widest,  but  both  are  deep  and 
distinct.  In  some  genera  there  are  decided  indications  of  a  longitudinal  furrow 
on  the  culmen  near  the  end.  The  nostrils  are  linear,  pervious,  very  narrow, 
situated  in  the  sinus  of  the  upper  mandible,  usually  very  near  its  base,  but 
sometimes  considerably  advanced.  The  angle  formed  by  the  rami  of  the  lower 
jaw  is  very  small,  the  enclosed  space  being  long  and  narrow,  and  the  groove 
marking  the  line  of  union  of  the  rami  usually  extending  about  two-thirds  the 
length  of  the  bill,  but  sometimes  nearly  to  the  tip.  The  extent  of  the  en- 
croachment of  the  feathers  on  the  bill  varies  in  the  different  genera ;  but, 
except  perhaps  in  Ancylocheilus,  it  is  always  greater  between  the  rami  than  on 
the  sides.  The  wings  are  long,  pointed  and  powerful ;  the  first  primary  is 
usually  the  longest,  but  the  second  is  nearly,  sometimes  quite,  equal  to  it. 
The  rest  are  all  rapidly  graduated.  The  secondaries  are  very  short  and  incon- 
spicuous. The  edge  of  the  outer  vane  is  obliquely  incised  at  the  extremity. 
The  tertials  are  usually  long,  slender  and  tapering,  sometimes  nearly  equal- 
ling the  primaries  in  length.  The  tail  is  rather  short,  usually  doubly  emar- 
ginate,  the  central  feathers  pointed,  and  projecting  somewhat  beyond  the 
others.  The  legs  and  feet  vary  greatly  in  their  character  in  the  different 
genera,  always,  however,  being  constant  in  each.  Except  in  Arquatella  and 
Tringa,  the  tibiae  are  always  exposed  for  a  considerable  portion  of  the  length 
of  the  tarsus,  and  in  those  genera  the  bare  portion  is  considerable.  Except  in 
Arquatella,  Actodromas,  and  perhaps  Ereunetes,  the  tarsus  is  always  decidedly 
1861.] 


M3666M 


172  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ACADEMY   OF 

longer  than  the  middle  toe  and  claw.  The  toes  are  usually  long  and  slender, 
more  or  less  margined  at  the  sides,  and  flattened  underneath  ;  free  at  the  base, 
or  with  a  very  rudimentary  membrane,  except  in  Micropalama  and  Ereunetes. 
The  lateral  are  nearly  equal  to  the  middle,  the  outer  slightly  longer  than  the 
inner.  The  hind  toe  is  present,  except  in  Calidris.  The  claws  vary  con- 
siderably in  length,  acuteness  and  amount  of  curvature,  but  they  are  always 
dilated  on  the  inner  edge. 

With  respect  to  coloration,  the  Tringece  of  North  America,  with  scarcely  the 
exception  of  Arquatella  maritima,  present  a  general  similarity  in  the  pattern 
and  disposal  of  the  markings  of  most  of  the  parts.  The  feathers  of  the  upper 
parts  have  their  centres  very  dark,  and  are  margined  with  some  shade  of  red- 
dish, yellowish,  or  white,  the  color  being  deepest  on  the  scapulars.  The 
primaries  are  uniformly  deep  dusky,  without  spots  or  bars,  and  are  darkest  at 
the  tips  and  on  the  outer  vanes.  The  shafts  of  all  are  white  for  some  portion, 
usually  the  central.  The  secondaries  are  ashy-gray,  bordered  to  a  greater  or 
less  extent  with  white.  The  central  tail  feathers  are  usually  considerably 
darker  than  the  lateral ;  but  neither  show  any  approach  towards  the  trans- 
verse bars  so  universal  among  the  Scolopacece  and  Totanince.  Any  attempt, 
however,  at  a  generalization  of  the  color  of  the  under  parts  seems  impossible, 
since,  as  will  be  seen  in  the  diagnoses  of  the  species,  they  are  found  of  very 
various  patterns  and  colors. 

The  species  inhabiting  North  America  are  divisible  into  eight  well-marked 
genera,  among  which  are  comprised  nearly  all  the  more  important  ones, 
though  some,  such  as  Eurinorhynchus  and  Limicola,  have  no  representatives. 
The  most  extensive  of  these,  Actodromas,  seems  to  contain  two  well-marked 
groups,  at  least  sub-generically  distinct.  Each  of  the  others  comprises  but 
a  single  admitted  North  American  species ;  and  of  some,  such  as  Tringa, 
Arquatella,  and  Ancylocheilus,  but  one  species  is  at  present  known.  The  cha- 
racters of  the  most  importance  among  the  Tringece  seem  to  lie  in  the  legs.  The 
proportions  of  tibia,  tarsus  and  middle  toe,  and  their  relations  to  the  bill, 
readily  characterize  definitely  the  groups.  They  are  also  the  most  constant, 
being  subject  to  very  little  variation  in  each  species.  This  is  as  might  be 
expected,  from  their  radical  nature,  since  the  most  important  and  essential 
character  in  any  group  should  be  the  least  subject  to  variation.  The  bill,  on 
the  other  hand,  diners  much  in  length  in  the  same  genus  or  species  ;  it  reaches 
its  maximum  of  variation  in  Ereunetes,  and  is  most  constant  throughout  the 
genus  Actodromas.  The  wings  and  tail  vary  somewhat,  but  within  very 
narrow  limits. 

The  North  American  genera  of  Tringece  may  be  readily  characterized  by  the 
proportions  of  bill,  tarsus  and  toe,  without  reference  to  the  tail  or  wings,  though 
these  of  course  furnish  additional  characters.  The  following  schedule,  in  which 
the  characters  are  purposely  made  as  brief  as  possible,  will  serve  to  define 
the  genera  as  adopted. 

Synopsis  of  Genera. 

A.  Toes  with  a  decided  basal  web. 

Bill  equal  to  tarsus,  both  very  long ;  exposed  portion 
of  tibia  equal  to  middle  toe,  which  is  not  quite 
two-thirds  the  tarsus,  Micropalama. 

Bill  equal  to  tarsus,  both  moderate ;  tibia  exposed 
for  two-thirds  the  middle  toe,  which  nearly  equals 
the  tarsus,  Ereunetes. 

B.  Toes  cleft  to  the  base,  or  with  a  very  rudimentary  membrane. 

I.  Bill  longer  than  the  tarsus. 

1.  Bill  straight ;  tibia  moderately  or  scarcely  at  all  exposed. 
Tarsus  longer  than  the  middle  toe,  hind  toe  present,   Tringa. 
As  in  Tringa ;  hind  toe  absent,  Calidris. 

Tarsus  shorter  than  the  middle  toe,  Arquatella. 


NATURAL  SCIENCES   OP  PHILADELPHIA.  173 

2.  Bill  decurved  ;  tibia  much  exposed. 

Bill  compressed;  legs  long,  slender;  middle  toe 

not  quite  three-fourths  the  tarsus,  Ancylocheilus. 

Bill  depressed ;  legs  moderate,  stout ;  middle  toe 

nearly  or  about  equal  to  tarsus,  Pelidna. 

II.  Bill  equal  to  the  tarsus. 

Tarsus  equal  to  middle  toe,  Actodromas. 

The  most  natural  succession  of  the  genera  appears  to  be  that  presented 
above,  viz. :  Micropalama,  Ereunetes,  Tringa,  Calidris,  Arquatella,  Ancylo- 
cheilus, Pelidna,  Actodromas.  Micropalama,  in  its  long,  slender,  sensitive  bill, 
somewhat  furrowed  culmen  and  digital  web,  seems  to  form  the  natural  con- 
necting link  between  Scolopaceee  and  Tringeee,  through  Macroramphus. 
Ereunetes  is  next  most  closely  allied,  having  also  the  membrane  to  the  toes  ; 
but  here  the  bill  and  feet  are  shortened,  and  have  nearly  the  proportions  of 
Tringa,  which  most  naturally  succeeds.  Calidris  is  in  all  essentials  like 
Tringa,  except  the  absence  of  the  hind  toe.  In  Arquatella  the  bill  is  some- 
times very  slightly  decurved ;  in  Ancylocheilus  and  Pelidna  it  is  successively 
more  so.  In  the  latter  the  middle  toe  becomes  nearly  or  quite  equal  to  the 
tarsus,  opening  the  way  for  Actodromas,  where  the  slender,  attenuated  bill, 
and  much  denuded  tarsus,  seem  to  lead  directly  to  the  Totanince. 

If  so  great  a  subdivision  of  the  Tringeee  as  is  here  presented  be  objected  to, 
it  is  replied  that  the  variations  in  external  form  are  so  great  that  a  single 
genus,  in  the  modern  acceptation  of  the  term,  cannot  contain  them  all ;  and 
if  more  than  one  genus  be  adopted  for  those  with  fully-cleft  anterior  toes,  it  is 
not  easy  to  stop  short  of  the  number  here  adopted.  Ornithologists  have 
indeed  perceived  how  unnatural  was  the  association  of  all  the  species  under 
Tringa,  and  at  different  times,  some  of  them  very  early,  names  have  been 
proposed  for  all  the  groups.  As  early  as  1800,  the  absence  of  the  hind  toe 
caused  Calidris  to  be  separated ;  and,  in  1811,  the  webbed  feet  of  Ereunetes 
were  made  the  grounds  of  generic  distinction.  Pelidna  of  Cuvier,  instituted 
in  1817  for  the  slender-toed  smaller  Sandpipers,  was  a  further  attempt  at 
division ;  but  that  genus,  as  left  by  its  author,  still  contained  species  very 
dissimilar ;  and,  in  1829,  Ancylocheilus  and  Actodromas  were  characterized*. 
The  great  peculiarities  of  Tringa  himantopus  Bon.  caused  it,  soon  after  its  first 
discovery,  in  1828,  to  receive  subgeneric  distinction  from  Tringa.  It  was  not, 
however,  till  1858,  that  Arquatella,  a  peculiar  form,  was  characterized.  But 
while  in  other  groups,  particularly  among  the  smaller  land  birds,  the  divisions 
have  been  minute  and  greatly  extended,  there  seems  to  have  been  a  general 
reluctance  on  the  part  of  ornithologists  with  regard  to  recognizing  these 
divisions.  It  may  be  that  in  this  group  Nature  allows  more  external  varia- 
tion in  forms  very  closely  allied  than  is  usual ;  but  until  this  is  proved  to  be 
the  case,  it  seems  necessary,  to  keep  pace  with  the  progress  of  ornithology,  to 
consider  the  characters  of  the  different  sections  as  of  full  generic  value. 

Having,  it  is  thought,  dwelt  sufficiently  upon  the  general  features  of  the 
group,  we  proceed  at  once  to  characterize  the  different  genera  and  species. 

MICROPALAMA    Baird. 

Hemipalama,  Bonaparte,  Syn.  1828,  316.     Typus  Tringa  himantopus,  Bon.  nee 

Bon.  Obs.  Wils.  1825.     (Typus  T.  semipalmata,  Wils.) 
Micropalama,  Baird,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  726.     Typus  T.  himantopus,  Bon. 

Char.  Bill  long,  equalling  the  tarsus,  straight  or  very  slightly  decurved, 
slender,  very  much  compressed,  tip  much  expanded  and  vascular  for  some 
distance.  Culmen  on  the  terminal  half  depressed,  with  two  rudimentary, 
longitudinal  furrows.  Groove  on  the  lower  mandible  narrow  and  indistinct. 
Wings  moderate,  pointed,  first  primary  a  little  the  longest.  Tail  of  twelve 

1861.] 


174  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ACADEMY   OP 

feathers,  short,  nearly  even  or  slightly  doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers 
projecting  but  little.  Legs  very  long  ;  tarsus  equal  to  the  bill ;  exposed  por- 
tion of  tibia  equal  to  middle  toe,  which  is  not  quite  two-thirds  the  tarsus. 
Toes  with  a  decided  basal  membrane  ;  flattened  beneath,  but  only  moderately 
margined.  Hind  toe  well  developed.  Body  slender  ;  neck  long. 

A  marked  and  very  peculiar  genus  of  Sandpipers,  of  which  the  most  cha- 
racteristic feature,  in  addition  to  the  long  compressed  bill,  is  the  remarkable 
elongation  of  the  tibia  and  tarsus.  The  former  is  exposed  for  fully  the  length 
of  the  middle  toe,  and  is  bare  for  a  tenth  of  an  inch  or  more  further.  The 
tibial  feathers  are  very  short.  The  tarsus  is  nearly  a  third  longer  than  the 
middle  toe.  The  basal  membrane  of  the  toes,  which,  though  much  ernargin- 
ated,  is  very  considerable  and  decided,  is  greatest  between  the  outer  and  mid- 
dle toe,  where  it  extends  to  the  first  joint.  The  wings  and  tail  are  moderate, 
and  present  no  special  peculiarities. 

In  the  lengthened  sensitive  bill,  basal  membrane  of  the  toes,  and  some  other 
characters,  Micropalama  seems  to  have  a  close  affinity  to  Macroramphus,  and 
in  a  measure  to  connect  by  means  of  that  genus  Scolopacece  and  Tringece,  pos- 
sessing, nevertheless,  all  the  distinguishing  features  of  the  latter  section. 
Among  the  Tringece  it  comes  nearest  to  Ereunetes,  which  has  the  basal  web 
and  the  same  relative  free  portion  of  bill  and  tarsus.  The  other  characters, 
however,  are  widely  different. 

Hemipalama  was  proposed  by  Bonaparte  in  1825  as  a  subgenus  for  the  Tringi 
semipalmata  of  Wilson,  but  was  subsequently  used  for  the  present  bird.  But 
as  the  generic  characters  are  very  different,  the  name  cannot  be  used  in  this 
connection.  Micropalama  of  Baird  has  as  its  type  the  T.  himantopus  of  Bona- 
parte, and  is  the  name  which  should  be  employed. 

MICROPALAMA  HIMANTOPUS,  (Bon.),  Baird. — Stilt  Sandpiper. 

Tringa  himantopus,  Bonaparte,  Ann.  N.  Y.  Lye.  ii.  1826,  157,  [fide  Gen.  Rep.] 

Lesson,  Manual  Ornith.  1828,  ii.  284.     Swainson,  F.  B.  A.  1831,  ii.  380. 

Bonaparte,  Am.  Orn.  1833,  iv.  89,  tab.  25,  fig.  3.     Audubon,  Orn.  Biog. 

1838,  iv.  332,  tab.  344;  Id,  Syn.  1839,  235  ;  Id.  Birds  Amer.  1842,  v.  271, 

tab.  334.     Giraud,  Birds  L.  I.  1844,  232. 
Tringa  Douglassii,  Swainson,  F.  B.  A.  1831,  ii.  379,  tab.  66. 
Tringa  (Hemipalama)  Douglassii,  Nuttall,  Man.  Orn.  1834,  ii.  141,  [cum  fig.] 
Tringa  (Hemipalama)  himantopus,  Bonaparte,  Spec.  Comp.  1827,  61  ;  id.  Syn. 

1S28,  316.     Nuttall,  Man.  Orn.  1834,  ii.  138. 

Tringa  (Hemipalama)  Audubonii,  Nuttall,  Man.  Orn.  1834,  ii.  140.  [juv.] 
Hemipalama  himantopus,  Bonaparte,  Comp.  List.  1838,  49.     Dekay,  N.  Y.  F. 

1844,  235,  tab.  86,  fig.  196. 

Hemipalama  multistriata,  "Licht."  Gray,  Genera,  1849,  iii.  578. 
Totanus  himantopus,  Larnbeye,  Av.  Cubae,  1850,  95. 
Micropalama  himantopus,  Baird,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  726. 

Sp.  Char.  Bill  much  longer  than  the  head,  very  slightly  de  curved,  much 
compressed ;  the  tip  flattened,  expanded,  punctulate.  Wings  moderate  or 
rather  long,  first  primary  longest,  the  rest  successively  more  rapidly  gradu- 
ated. Tail  rather  short,  slightly  doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers  pro- 
jecting but  little.  Legs  very  long  ;  exposed  portion  of  tibia  equal  to  middle 
toe,  which  is  two-thirds  the  tarsus.  Adult  in  spring. — Upper  parts  very  dark 
brownish  black,  deepest  on  the  scapulars,  each  feather  edged  and  tipped  with 
white,  light  yellowish  or  reddish,  which  on  the  scapulars  makes  two  or  three 
deep  indentations.  A  dusky  line  from  bill  to  eye,  and  a  light  one  over  the 
latter  to  the  occiput.  Auriculars,  and  a  continuous  line  beneath  and  in  front  of 
the  eye,  light  chestnut  red.  A  broad  stripe  of  bright  chestnut  on  each  side  of 
the  occiput,  confluent  on  the  nape.  Rump  dusky  ;  upper  tail  coverts  white, 
transversely  barred  with  wavy  lines  cf  deep  dusky.  Primaries  deep  dusky, 
the  tips  blackish.  Tail  ashy  grey,  central  feathers  scarcely  darker,  the  mar- 


NATURAL   SCIENCES   OF  PHILADELPHIA.  175 

gins  of  all  and  a  central  field  along  the  shaft  white.  Under  parts  white,  the 
throat  and  jugulum  streaked,  and  the  other  parts  thickly  and  uniformly  waved 
with  transverse  dusky  bars,  bordered  with  light  reddish.  Bill,  legs  and  feet, 
dark  greenish  black.  Young.  Upper  parts  a  uniform  light  greyish  ash,  the 
blackish  feathers  appearing  at  intervals  ;  these  and  the  dusky  scapulars  and 
wing  coverts  bordered  with  white.  Upper  tail  coverts  white,  scarcely  marked 
with  dusky.  Primaries  as  in  the  adult.  Under  parts  white,  the  jugulum  with 
an  ashy  suffusion,  and  obsoletely  streaked.  Slight  traces  of  the  reddish 
auriculars.  Bill  dusky  black,  legs  and  feet  light  greenish  yellow. 

Length  9-25,  extent  16-75,  wing  5-1,  tail  2-3.  Tarsus  1-6,  middle  toe  1, 
tibia  exposed  1  inch. 

Habitat. — North  America,  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains. 

The  preceding  diagnosis  would  characterize  the  species  sufficiently  well  for 
ordinary  purposes  ;  but  in  view  of  the  uncertainty  whether  there  are  not  two 
or  more  species  to  be  enumerated  as  inhabitants  of  North  America,  a  some- 
what more  extended  description  may  not  be  considered  unnecessary.  The 
following  is  taken  from  a  very  perfect  male  from  Great  Slave  Lake  in  spring 
plumage  ;  and  the  description  of  the  supposed  young  is  from  a  specimen  from 
the  Red  Fork  of  the  Arkansas. 

The  feathers  extend  on  the  lower  mandible  nearly  in  the  form  of  a  right 
angle,  their  upper  outline  being  about  parallel  with  the  culmen,  to  a  distance 
beyond  those  on  the  upper  equal  to  half  the  distance  of  those  between  the 
rami.  The  crown  of  the  head  is  blackish,  streaked  with  white  and  with  red- 
dish. An  ill-defined  light  line  over  the  eye  commences  about  half  way  be- 
tween the  eye  and  bill,  and  extends  to  the  occiput,  widening  posteriorly. 
There  is  a  dusky  line  between  the  eye  and  bill.  The  auriculars  are  light 
chestnut  red,  which  color  extends  as  a  line  beneath  and  before  the  eye  to  the 
white  stripe  above  ;  interrupted  by  this,  it  commences  above  the  stripe  and 
passes  over  the  side  of  the  occiput  to  the  nape,  where  it  is  confluent  with  the 
one  on  the  opposite  side.  The  hind  neck  is  simply  streaked  with  dusky  and 
whitish.  The  middle  of  the  back  is  black,  each  feather  edged  and  tipped  with 
light  yellowish,  which  encroaches  upon  the  central  black  in  two  or  three  irregu- 
lar indentations.  On  the  scapulars  the  edgings  are  tinged  with  reddish,  and 
the  indentations  are  more  numerous  and  regular.  The  long  tertials  are  black- 
ish, evenly  edged  with  chestnut  passing  into  whitish  at  the  tip.  All  the 
feathers  of  the  back  have  a  greenish  gloss.  The  secondaries  and  greater 
coverts  are  light  ashy  edged  with  white,  the  lesser  coverts  darker  with  light 
borders.  The  primaries  are  dusky,  their  tips  black,  the  shaft  of  the  first 
brown  passing  into  white,  of  the  others  black  passing  into  brown  ;  the  tips  of 
all  black.  The  centre  of  the  rump  is  dusky,  the  sides  nearly  white ;  the  upper 
tail  coverts  white  with  numerous  sagittate  or  wavy  bars  of  deep  dusky.  The 
tail  is  very  light  ash,  the  central  feathers  scarcely  darker,  all  with  the  margins 
and  a  central  shaft  field  white,  most  of  the  inner  vane  of  the  two  outer  being 
white.  The  under  parts  are  white ;  the  throat  very  sparsely  marked  with 
minute  dusky  streaks,  which  on  the  jugulum  are  much  larger  and  more  nu- 
merous ;  these  streaks  on  the  breast  change  to  transverse  wavy  bars  of  dusky 
bordered  with  reddish,  which  uniformly  cover  the  whole  under  parts.  These 
lines  are  thickest  and  most  distinct  on  the  breast,  growing  more  obsolete  in 
the  middle  of  the  belly,  and  are  largest  on  the  sides  under  the  wings,  where 
the  reddish  margins  fill  up  the  space  between  the  bars  on  the  same  feather. 
There  is  little  reddish  on  the  under  tail  coverts,  where  the  bars  become  more 
or  less  sagittate. 

The  young  is  very  different  from  the  adult  in  color,  but  presents  much  the 
same  form  and  size.  The  upper  parts  are  of  a  uniform  light  ashy,  the  blackish 
of  the  adult  appearing  in  irregular  patches.  These  dark  feathers,  as  well  as 
the  scapulars,  wing  coverts  and  tertials  are  edged  with  white,  the  latter 

1861.] 


i 

176  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE  ACADEMY   OP 

slightly  tinged  with  reddish.  The  wings  and  tail  are  much  as  in  the  adult, 
the  upper  tail  coverts,  however,  scarcely  barred.  The  under  parts  are  white  ; 
the  jugulum,  and,  to  some  extent,  the  sides  under  the  wings  with  a  lighter 
wash  of  the  color  of  the  back,  and  with  very  obsolete  streaks  of  dusky.  The 
under  tail  coverts  laterally  are  slightly  streaked  with  dusky.  There  is  an 
indistinct  white  line  over  the  eye,  and  a  dusky  one  between  the  eye  and  bill. 
The  auriculars  show  traces  of  the  reddish,  but  there  is  none  to  be  perceived 
on  the  nape  or  sides  of  the  occiput.  The  bill  is  black,  as  in  the  adult,  but  the 
legs  are  very  different,  being  light  greenish  yellow. 

The  synonymy  of  this  Sandpiper,  in  consequence  of  its  very  remarkable 
form  and  colors,  is  definite  and  well  determined,  though,  as  will  be  seen  by  the 
list  given,  various  names  have  been  applied  to  it  by  different  authors.  It  was 
first  introduced  to  the  scientific  world  in  1826,  by  Bonaparte,  in  the  Annals  of 
the  N.  Y.  Lyceum,  under  the  name  of  Tringa  himantopus.  By  the  same  author 
it  was  afterwards  placed  in  his  subgenus  Hemipalama,  (subsequently  erected 
into  a  genus.)  The  type  of  this,  however,  being,  as  already  stated,  the  T. 
semipalmata  of  Wilson,  the  name  cannot  of  course  be  retained.  Nearly  all 
authors  who  speak  of  it  employ  Hemipalama,  giving  it  either  subgeneric  or 
full  generic  rank.  Lambeye,  however,  places  the  bird  in  Totanus,  probably 
with  reference  to  the  long  legs  and  the  webbing  of  the  toes.  Tringa  Douglassii 
of  Swainson,  is  undoubtedly  the  present  bird  in  mature  plumage,  though  the 
figure  indicates  a  more  rufescent  state  of  plumage  than  I  have  ever  seen.  The 
Tringa  himantopus  "Bon."  of  the  same  author,  Nuttall,  (page  40  of  the 
Manual,)  very  precipitately  "  ventures  to  consider  as  a  distinct  species  from 
the  preceding"  ( T.  himantopus,)  and  names  it  Tringa  (Hemipalama)  Audu- 
bonii,  though  retaining  both  the  T.  himantopus  Bon.  and  Douglassii  Sw.  I 
have  little  doubt,  however,  that  all  three  names  refer  to  the  same  bird,  the 
Micropalama  himantopus  of  Baird  (General  Report,  page  726)  and  of  the  present 
article. 

EREUNETES  Illiger. 

Ereunetes,  Illiger,  Prod.  1811,  262  ;  typus  E.  petrificatus,  111. 

Hemipalama,  Bonaparte,  Obs.  Wils.  1825,  88.     Typus  T.  semipalmata,  Wils. 

Nee  syn.  1828. 

Heteropoda,  Nuttall,  Man.  Orn.  1834,  ii.  136.  Typus  idem.  Nee  Latreillei,  1804, 
fide  Gen.  Rep. 

Char.  Bill  variable,  about  as  long  as  the  head,  straight,  quite  stout,  both 
mandibles  deeply  grooved  to  the  considerably  expanded,  sensitive,  vascular 
tip.  Wings  long,  pointed  ;  secondaries  deeply  obliquely  incised ;  tertials  nar- 
row and  elongated.  Tail  moderate,  doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers 
pointed  and  projecting.  Tarsus  rather  longer  than  middle  toe,  usually  about 
equal  to  the  bill.  Bare  portion  of  tibia  two-thirds  the  tarsus.  Toes  connected 
by  a  broad  basal  web,  and  broadly  margined.  Hind  toe  well  developed. 

A  genus  well  characterized  among  the  Tringece,  by  the  extensive  webbing  of 
the  toes,  a  feature  by  which  it  may  be  readily  distinguished  from  all  other 
genera,  except  Micropalama.  The  other  differences,  however,  from  that  genus 
are  very  great.  The  bill  is  much  shorter,  being  about  equal  to  the  head, 
instead  of  very  much  longer.  The  middle  toe  is  nearly  equal  to  the  tarsus, 
and  the  bare  portion  of  life  tibia  is  much  less.  The  colors  are  very  different. 
On  the  other  hand  Ereunetes  comes  very  near  to  Tringa,  with  which  it  agrees 
in  almost  every  particular,  except  that  of  the  semipalmation  of  the  toes.  It 
appears  to  form  the  natural  link  between  Micropalama  and  Tringa  proper. 

According  to  Cassin,  (Gen.  Rep.  724,)  the  genus  Ereunetes  of  Illiger,  is  based 
upon  a  bird  which  has  been  proved,  by  actual  examination  of  the  type  speci- 
men, to  be  the  Tringa  semipalmata,  Wils.  Ereunetes  must  therefore  supersede 
Hemipalama,  Bon.,  and  Heteropoda,  Nutt.,  both  instituted  upon  the  same 
type. 

[July, 


NATURAL  SCIENCES  OP  PHILADELPHIA.  177 

EBEUXETES  PUSILLUS,  (L.)  Cassin. — Semipalmated  Sandpiper. 

Tringa  cinclus,  Dominicensis  minor,   Brisson,  Ornith.  1760,  v.  tab.  37,  fig.  3, 

[baud  dubie.] 

Tringa  pusilla,  Linnaeus,  Syst.  Nat.  1766,  i.  252,  [in  prsecedentem  instituta.] 
[Nee  Meyer.  ;  nee  Bechst.  ;  nee  Wils.]  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  681. 
Latham.  Ind.  Orn.  1790,  ii.  737. 

?  Tringa  pusilla,  Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet.  1819,  xxxiv.  452. 
Ereunetes  petrificatus,  Illiger,  Prod.  1811,  262.     Cassin,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  724. 
Tringa  semipalmata,   Wilson,   Am.  Orn.  1813,  vii.  131,  tab.  Ixiii.  fig.  3  ;  id. 
Ord.  Ed.  1829,  iii.  132 ;  id.  Brewer.  Ed.  1840,  542,  fig.  225  ;  ib.  Syn.  725. 
Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet.  1819,  xxxiv.  462.    Swainson,  F.  B.  A.  1831,  ii.  381. 
Audubon,  Orn.   Biog.  v.  1839,  111,  tab.  408  ;   id.  Syn.  1839,  236 ;  id. 
Birds.  Amer.  1842,  v.  277,  tab.  336.     Giraud,  Birds  L.  1. 1844,  239.  New- 
berry,  P.  R.  R.  Surv.  1857.  vi.  100. 
Tringa  (Hemipalama)  semipalmata,  Bonaparte,  Obs.  Wils.  1825,  num.  212 ;  id. 

Specc.  Comp.  1827,  62. 

Hemipalama  semipalmata,  Lambeye,  Av.  Cubse,  1850,  96. 
Tringa  (Heteropoda)  semipalmata,  Nuttall,  Man.  1834,  ii.  136. 
Heteropoda  semipalmata,    Bonaparte,   Comp.  List,   1838,  49.     Dekay,  N.  Y. 

Fauna,  1844,  236,  tab.  86,  fig.  195.     Gray,  Genera,  1849,  iii.  580. 
Ereunetes  semipalmatus,  Cabanis,  Schom.  Reise.  iii.  758,  fide  Gen.  Rep.     Bona- 
parte, Comptes  Rend,  xliii.  1856,  fide  Gen.  Rep.     Cabanis,  Journ.  fur 
Orn.  1856,  419,  fide  Gen.  Rep. 

?  Heteropoda  mauri,  Bonaparte,  Comp.  List,  1838,  49,  fide  Gen.  Rep. 
?  Ereunetes  mauri,  Gundlach,  Cab.  Journ.  1856,  419,  fide  Gen.  Rep. 
?  Hemipalama  minor.  Lambeye,  Av.  Cnbse,  1850,  97. 
Tringa  brevirostris,  Spix,  Av.  Bras.  1825,  ii.  76,  fide  Gen.  Rep. 
?  Pelidna  Brissoni,  Lesson,  Man.  d'Orn.  1828,  ii.  277,  \_T.pusillam,  Linn,  citat.] 
Ereunetes  pusillus,  Cassin,  Proc.  Acad.  N.  S.  1860,  xiii.  195. 

Sp.  char.  Bill  stout,  straight,  variable  in  length,  usually  about  equal  to 
the  head,  the  tip  considerably  expanded  and  punctulate.  Feathers  extending 
on  the  base  of  the  bill  to  a  nearly  equal  distance  on  both  mandibles,  their 
outline  straight  and  vertical ;  those  between  the  rami  reaching  but  little  fur- 
ther. First  primary  usually  longer  than  the  second,  the  rest  equally  gradu- 
ated. Upper  tail  coverts  very  long  ;  tail  moderate,  doubly  emarginate,  cen- 
tral feathers  pointed  and  projecting.  Adult.— Upper  parts  variegated  with 
ashy,  pure  black,  bright  chestnut  and  white,  each  feather  having  a  terminal 
black  field,  and  being  margined  with  reddish  and  tipped  with  white  or  ashy. 
Tertials  dusky  brown,  edged  with  ashy  or  light  chestnut ;  wing  coverts  and 
secondaries  dusky  ash  edged  with  ashy  white.  Primaries  deep  dusky  ;  shaft 
of  the  first  white,  the  central  portions  of  the  others  the  same,  their  bases  brown 
and  tips  black.  Rump  and  upper  tail  coverts  brownish  black,  the  outer  pair 
of  the  latter  white  barred  with  dusky.  Central  tail  feathers  dusky  brown, 
the  others  light  greyish  ash  scarcely  edged  with  white.  Beneath  white  ;  the 
throat  and  breast  slightly  rufescent,  and  with  oval  or  cordate  spots  of  brown- 
ish black,  most  numerous  across  the  breast,  and  extending  sparsely  along  the 
sides  as  shaft  lines.  Middle  of  belly  and  under  tail  coverts  white,  mostly 
immaculate.  Bill  and  feet  greenish  black. 

Length  6 '5,  wing  3'75,  tail  2-1  ;  bill  (average)  1  inch  ;  tarsus  -85,  toe  -8, 
tibia,  bare,  -50. 

Habitat. — Entire  temperate  North  America.     Bahaia  Islands. 

The  present  bird,  the  single  admitted*  American  representative  of  a  genus 

*  I  am  by  no  means  satisfied  that  but  a  single  species  of  Ereunetes  exists  in  North 
America.  The  differences  in  size,  in  length  and  proportions  of  the  tarsus  even,  and  es- 
pecially in  the  bill,  cause  it  to  seem  almost  impossible  that  all  the  specimens  before  me 
are  specifically  the  same.  Thus,  the  difference  in  the  length  of  the  tarsus,  between  the 

1861.]  13 


178      .     PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ACADEMY  OP 

of  suck  peculiar  characters,  requires  comparison  with  no  other  sandpiper. 
Actodromas  mlnutilla  has  much  the  same  pattern  of  coloration,  and  sometimes 
approaches  it  in  size  ;  but  the  other  differences  are  too  great  to  allow  of  their 
being  confounded. 

The  bill  of  this  species  varies  most  remarkably  in  length,  the  difference 
being  four-tenths  of  an  inch  ;  it  is  always,  however,  quite  stout.  The  tibia  and 
tarsus  vary  somewhat,  but  within  narrow  limits.  The  proportions  of  the 
quills  vary,  but  the  first  is  usually  longest.  The  tail  is  very  decidedly  doubly 
emarginate,  the  difference  between  the  outer  and  next  feather  being  nearly 
one-tenth  of  an  inch  ;  the  third  is  the  shortest.  The  upper  tail  coverts  are 
very  long,  as  are  also  the  tertials.  The  winter  and  immature  plumage  shows 
little  or  none  of  the  reddish,  the  feathers  being  mostly  ashy  with  lighter  bor- 
ders. The  young  in  July  and  August  have  scarcely  any  traces  of  the  spots 
beneath,  being  almost  entirely  white,  with  a  light  buff  wash  across  the  breast. 
There  is  also  much  more  white  on  the  margins  of  the  feathers  of  the  upper 
parts. 

With  the  exception  of  Tringa  canutus  and  Ancylocheilus  subarquata,  there  is 
perhaps  no  North  American  Sandpiper  which  has  received  such  a  variety  of 
names  as  the  present.  Fortunately,  however,  the  proper  name  to  be  employed 
is  now  pretty  definitely  determined.  The  subject  of  the  generic  appellation 
has  already  been  discussed  under  Ereunetes,  and  it  now  only  remains  to  settle 
the  question  of  the  specific  denomination.  The  first  notice  of  the  species  is  in 
1760,  by  Brisson,  who,  in  his  Ornithologia,  describes  and  figures  a  Tringa  cin- 
clus  Dominicensis  minor,  which  can  be  no  other  than  the  present  bird.  The 
description  applies  well,  and  the  figure  plainly  shows  the  webbing  of  the  toes, 
a  feature  entirely  peculiar  among  the  smaller  Tringece.  It  was  upon  this  bird 
that  Linnaeus,  in  1766,  based  his  Tringa  pusilla,  which  name  being  the  first 
applied  to  the  bird  in  the  binomial  system,  has  priority  over  all  others,  and 
must  be  employed.  In  1811,  at  the  time  of  the  founding  of  the  genus  Ereunetes, 
of  Illiger,  that  author  named  the  bird  E.  petrificatus.  Cassin,  in  the  General 
Report,  though  admitting  that  T.  pusilla,  Linn.,  is  really  this  species,  does 
not  change  Illiger's  specific  appellation,  concerning  which  all  doubt  is  removed 
by  the  actual  examination  of  the  type  specimen.  Very  recently,  however, 
in  the  Proceedings  of  the  Philadelphia  Academy,  he  has  given  the  bird  as 
Ereunetes  pusillus,  Cass.,  the  name  by  which  it  should  be  known.  In  1813 
Wilson  named  the  bird  T.  semipalmata,  which  designation  being  a  most  appro- 
priate one,  has  been  in  general  use  among  modern  ornithologists,  though  re- 
ferred by  different  authors  successively  to  Tringa,  Eeteropoda,  and  Ereunetes. 
The  Pelidna  Brissoni,  of  Lesson,  who  quotes  T.  pusilla,  Linn.,  is  probably  the 
present  bird. 

The  remarkable  variations  in  size  and  in  the  depth  of  the  bill  to  which  this 
bird  is  subject,  have  given  rise  to  several  nominal  species.  The  Hemipalama 

largest  and  smallest  of  these,  amounts  to  nearly  two-tenths  of  an  inch  ;  and  in  length  of 
bill  to  about  four-tenths,  the  latter  being  more  than  half  the  entire  length  of  the  shorter 
bill.  The  shortest  bills  appear  fully  as  stout  as  the  longest.  These  differences  do  not 
seem  to  depend  upon  locality,  being  found  in  specimens  from  the  same  region,  while 
specimens  from  widely  separated  localities  are  absolutely  identical.  Thus,  an  excessively 
short-billed  bird  from  Maryland  is  identical  with  one  from  Nebraska,  while  very  large 
and  long-billed  specimens  from  Georgia,  Utah  and  the  Pacific  coast  do  not  differ  appre- 
ciably. Specimens,  however,  from  the  same  locality,  and  undoubtedly  of  the  same  species, 
exhibit  much  variation  in  size,  length  of  bill  and  tarsus,  amount  of  red  or  white  above, 
and  character  of  the  spots  beneath;  so  that  without  a  full  series  of  the  common  Atlantic 
bird  before  me,  and  especially  in  the  uncertainty,  if  two  or  more  species  be  admitted,  to 
which  one  the  name  pusilla  belongs,  I  have  preferred  to  consider  them  as  specifically 
identical.  Still,  it  would  not  be  surprising  if  a  careful  and  extended  examinaiion  of  a  large 
series  of  Ereunetes  from  all  localities  on  the  continent  should  substantiate  two  or  even 
three  good  species  :  Tringa  semipalmata,  of  Wilson,  Hemipalama  minor,  of  Gundlach,  and 
Heteropoda  mauri,  of  Bonaparte. 

[July, 


NATURAL   SCIENCES   OP  PHILADELPHIA.  179 

minor  of  Gundlach  is  founded  upon  shortness  of  bill  as  a  character  ;  as  is  also 
(fide  Gen.  Rep.)  the  Tringa  brevirostris  of  Spix.  By  the  same  authority  the 
Heteropoda  mauri  of  Bonaparte  is  considered  as  merely  a  larger  race  of  the 
present  species. 

TRINGA  Linnaeus. 

Tringa,  Linnaeus,  Syst.  Nat.  1735,     Tyups  T.  canwtus,  L.  (fide  G.  R.  Gray.) 
Calidris,  Cuvier,  Regne  An.  1817,  Typus  T.  canutus,  L.     (Nee.  Guv.  1800,  cujus 

typus  T.  arenaria,  i.  fide  G.  R.  Gray.') 
Canutus,  Brehm,  1830,  (fide  G.  R.  Gray.) 

Char. — Bill  about  as  long  as,  or  rather  longer  than,  the  head,  straight, 
stout,  somewhat  compressed,  widening  uniformly  from  the  middle  to  the 
slightly  expanded,  rather  hard  tip ;  the  culmen  depressed  on  the  terminal  half 
to  the  expansion  at  tip,  and  obsoletely  furrowed.  Both  mandibles  deeply 
grooved  to  the  tip.  Nostrils  very  large  'and  placed  far  forward  in  the  upper 
groove.  Feathers  extending  on  the  lower  mandible  much  further  than  on  the 
upper,  and  nearly  as  far  as  those  between  the  rami.  Wings  long,  pointed,  first 
primary  decidedly  longest.  Secondaries  moderately  incised.  Tertials  short, 
broad,  and  comparatively  stiff.  Tail  rather  short,  nearly  even,  the  central 
feathers  projecting  but  little  if  any.  Legs  short  and  very  stout;  tarsus  usually 
shorter  than  the  bill;  longer  than  the  middle  toe.  Tibial  feathers  reaching 
nearly  to  joint;  tibiae  bare  for  nearly  two-thirds  the  tarsus.  Toes  very  short 
and  stout,  free  at  base,  widely  margined ;  outer  lateral  longer  than  inner. 
Hind  toe  present,  well  developed.  Claws  short,  stout,  blunt,  much  curved, 
dilated  on  the  inner  edge.  .Size  large,  general  form  stout. 

In  the  above  diagnosis  I  have  drawn  the  characters  of  the  genus  so  as  to 
include  only  the  type  (canutus)  upon  which  it  was  founded.  In  this  acceptation 
it  may  be  considered  as  typical  of  the  section,  embodying  as  it  does  the  most 
characteristic  features  of  the  group,  and  presenting  their  usual  variations;  very 
great  in  plumage  and  in  the  length  of  the  bill,  and  slight  in  the  proportions  of 
the  legs  and  shape  of  the  wings  and  tail.  The  essential  characters  lie  in  the 
stout,  moderately  long,  straight  bill,  which  usually  considerably  exceeds  the 
tarsus,  which  latter  is  much  longer  than  the  very  short  stout  toes ;  the  long 
tibial  feathers,  long  pointed  wings,  and  short  nearly  even  tail.  The  peculiar 
proportions  of  bill  and  legs  is  shared  by  no  other  Sandpiper,  so  far  as  my 
knowledge  extends,  except  Calidris,  which  is  evidently  closely  allied.  This 
genus,  however,  is  at  once  distinguished  by  the  marked  character  of  the 
absence  of  the  hind  toe.  The  affinities  of  Ereunetes  have  already  been  adverted 
to.  Arquatella  presents  the  next  closest  relationship,  but  is  well  characterized 
by  the  extremely  abbreviated  tarsus,  rounded  tail,  and  some  other  features. 

Tringa  is  among  the  oldest  of  genera,  having  been  established  by  Linnaeus  in 
1735.  As  usual  with  old  Linnaean  genera,  it  has  oeen  used  with  great  latitude, 
all  the  species  which  now  compose  the  section  having  been  included  in  it.  It 
seems,  however,  to  represent  a  form  from  which  all  others  are  sufficiently  dif- 
ferent/o  require  full  generic  rank.  Its  synonyms  are  (fide  G.  R.  Gray)  Calidris 
of  Cuvier,  1800,  (not  of  1817,  of  which  the  type  is  T.  arenaria,  L.,)  and  Canutus 
of  Brehm,  1830. 

North  America  possesses  but  a  single  representative  of  the  genus  as  restricted. 
The  Tringa  Cooperi  of  Baird,  which  has  been  referred  to  it,  seems  to  fall  more 
naturally  under  Actodromas.  Its  relationships  will  be  found  fully  discussed 
under  that  head. 

TRINGA  CAXUTUS  Linnaeus. — Red-breasted  Sandpiper. 

Tringa  canutus,  Linnaeus,  Syst.  Nat.  i.  1766,  251.  Latham,  Ind.  Orn.  1790,  ii. 
738.  Pennant,  Arct.  Zool.  1785,  ii.  473.  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788.  Pal- 
las, Zoog.  Rosso-As.  1811,  ii.  197.  Temminck,  Man.  d'Orn,  1820,  ii.  627 

1861.] 


180  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ACADEMY   OP 

Jenyns,  Manual,   1835,  213.     Bonaparte,   Comp.  List,  1838,  49.     Schinz. 

Europ.  Faun.   1840,   i.  326.      Macgillivray,   Man.  Brit.  Orn.  1842,  ii.  67, 

Dekay,  N.  Y.  F.  1844,  243,  tab.  85,  fig.  194,  et.  tab.  97,  fig.  218.     Schlegel, 

Rev.  Crit.  1844,  88.     Gray,  Genera,  1849,  iii.  579.     Degland,  Orn.  Eur. 

1849,  ii.  219.     Bonaparte,  Rev.  Crit.  1850,  185.     Parzudaki,  Cat.  Ois.  Eur. 

1859,  14.     Meyer,  Brit.  Birds,  1857,  v.  67.     Cassin,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  715. 
Tringa  ferruginea,  Brunnich,  Orn.  Bor.  1764,  53.      Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet.  1819, 

xxxiv.  466. 
Tringa  cinerea,  Brunnich,  Orn.  Bor.  1764,  53.     Latham,  Ind.  Orn.  1790,  ii.  733. 

Pennant,  Arct.  Zool.  1785,  474.     Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  pars  ii.  673. 

Wilson,  Am.  Orn.  1813,  vii.  36,  tab.  Ivii.  fig.  2;    id.  Ord.  Ed.  1829,  iii. 

142  ;    id.  Brewer.  Ed.  1840,  482,  fig.  224  ;   ibid.  Syn.  725.     Lichtenstein, 

Verz.  1823,  72.      Lesson,  Man.  d'Orn.  1828,  ii.  283.      Swainson,  F.  B.  A. 

1831,  ii.  387.     Nuttall,  Man.  Orn.  1834,  ii.  125. 
? Tringa  australis,  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  pars  ii.  679.     Latham,  Ind.  Orn 

1790,  ii.  737. 
Tringa  ncevia,  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  pars  ii.  681.     Latham,  Ind.  Orn.  1790, 

ii.  732.     Pennant,  Arct.  Zool.  1785,'ii.  480. 
Tringa  grisea,  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  pars.  ii.  681.     Latham,  Ind.  Orn.  1790, 

ii.  733. 
Tringa  islandica,  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  pars.  ii.  682.     Latham,  Ind.  Orn. 

1790,  ii.  737.     Pennant,  Arct.  Zool.  1785,  ii.  476.     Audubon,  Orn.  Biog. 

1838,  iv.  ]30,  tab.  315;  id.  Syn.  1839,  232;  id.  Birds  Amer.  1842,  v.  254, 

tab.  328.     Giraud,  Birds  L.  I.  1844,  224.     Holboll,  Fauna  Green.  1846,  38. 

Nilsson,  Scand.  Faun.  1858,  ii.  252. 
Tringa  rufa,  Wilson,  Am.  Orn.  1813,  vii.  43,  tab.  Ivii.  fig.  5  ;  id.  Ord.  Ed.  1829, 

iii.  140;  id.  Brew.  Ed.  1840,  487,  fig.  227;  ibid.  Syn.  725. 
Tringa  (Tringa)  canutus,  Bonaparte,  Cat.  Met.  1842,  61. 
Tringa  (Tringa)  islandica,  Bonaparte,  Speech.  Comp.  1827,  62. 
Tringa  (Tringa)  rufa,  Bonaparte,  Obs.  Wils.  1825,  93. 

Sp.  Char.—  Largest  of  North  American  Trinaece.  Bill  stout,  straight,  rather 
longer  than  the  head,  npper  mandible  widely  and  deeply  grooved  to  the  expan- 
sion at  tip.  Feathers  extending  on  lower  mandible  much  farther  than  on  upper, 
and  nearly  as  far  as  those  between  the  rami.  First  primary  decidedly  longest; 
tail  short,  nearly  even  ;  legs  short,  stout;  tarsus  usually  shorter  than  the  bill, 
but  much  exceeding  the  middle  toe.  Adult  in  spring.  Upper  parts  brownish- 
black,  each  feather  broadly  tipped  and  edged  with  ashy  white,  tinged  with 
reddish  yellow  on  the  scapulars.  Rump  dark  ash,  transversely  banded  with 
dusky ;  upper  tail  coverts  white,  with  transverse  sagittate  or  crescentic 
bars  of  brownish  black.  Tail  greyish  ash,  edged  with  ashy  white.  Outer 
webs  and  tips  of  primaries  deep  dusky,  the  inner  much  lighter.  Secondaries 
and  coverts  greyish  ash,  broadly  edged  and  tipped  with  ashy  white.  Line  over 
the  eye  and  entire  under  parts  a  uniform  deep  brownish-red,  fading  into  white 
on  the  sides  posteriorly  and  the  under  tail  coverts,  which  latter  are  marked 
with  sagittate  spots  of  dusky.  Legs  and  feet  greenish  black.  Young  in  autumn. 
Upper  parts  a  uniform  dark  ash,  or  cinereous,  each  feather  tipped  with  ashy  or 
pure  white,  and  having  a  sub-terminal  edging  of  dusky  black.  Indistinct  line 
over  the  eye,  and  whole  under  parts  white,  more  or  less  tinged  with  light  red- 
dish, and  the  throat,  breast  and  sides  with  rather  sparse,  irregularly  disposed 
lines  and  spots  of  dusky,  which  become  transverse  waved  bars  on  the  latter. 

Length  10-5,  extent  20'5,  wing  6-4,  tail  2-7.  Bill  about  1-4,  tarsus  1-2, 
middle  toe  1  inch.  Tibia  bare  -6. 

Eabitat. — Atlantic  coast  of  North  America  ;  Europe. 

This  is  the  largest  of  the  Sandpipers,  and,  though  exceeding  all  others  in  the 
variation  of  plumage  to  which  it  is  subject,  may  yet  be  easily  recognized  in  all 
stages  by  its  generic  characters,  which  differ  in  some  marked  particulars  from 
those  of  any  other  bird  of  the  section.  In  the  above  diagnosis  are  given  the 


NATURAL   SCIENCES   OF  PHILADELPHIA.  181 

plumage  of  the  adult  and  of  the  young  of  the  first  autumn.  These  represent 
the  two  extremes;  but  birds  maybe  found  of  every  intermediate  stage.  In 
respect  to  form,  the  bird  varies  chiefly  in  the  length  of  the  bill  and  shape  of 
the  tail.  The  bill  in  adult  specimens  is  always  longer  than  the  tarsus,  but 
being  dependent  somewhat  on  age,  may  in  young  birds  be  found  equal  to  the 
tarsus,  or  even  a  little  shorter.  The  tail,  usually  nearly  or  quite  even,  is  some- 
times in  immature  birds  considerably  doubly  emarginate ;  the  central  feathers, 
however,  are  never  pointed  and  projecting  as  in  Actodromas.  As  usual  among 
the  Tringece,  the  tarsus  and  toes  do  not  differ  much  in  length  or  proportions. 

Tringa  canuius  is  mentioned  in  the  very  earliest  ornithological  writings,  and, 
as  is  usually  the  case  with  those  species  which  vary  much  in  plumage,  has 
received  a  great  variety  of  names.  The  older  authors  instituted  nominal 
species  on  almost  every  change  of  plumage  which  it  undergoes;  but  still,  these 
stages  are  now  so  well  known,  that  there  is  little  difficulty  in  identifying  the 
descriptions.  The  "  grisled  "  and  "  freckled  "  sandpipers  of  Latham  and  Gmelin, 
T.  grisea  and  ncevia,  as  well  as,  in  all  probability,  the  T.  australis,  Gm.,  are  to  be 
referred  to  intermediate  stages  of  the  present  bird.  But  it  is  the  plumage  of 
the  first  autumn  which  has  given  rise  to  the  most  firmly  established  nominal 
species,  the  T.  cinerea,  Auct. ;  it  is  as  different  as  possible  from  that  of  the 
adult,  and  at  the  same  time  is  marked  in  character  and  presents  but  few  evi- 
dences of  immaturity.  It  is  not  a  little  singular  that  as  late  as  1813  Wilson 
should  give  the  bird  a  new  name,  (T.  rufa^)  and  say  that  "of  this  prettily- 
marked  species  I  can  find  no  description ;"  there  being  already  at  that  date  no 
less  than  seven  different  appellations  for  the  bird.  Tringa  canulus  of  Linnaeus 
seems  to  have  priority  over  all  others,  and  is  the  name  now  in  general  use. 

CALIDRIS   Cuvier. 

Calidris,  Cuvier,  1799—1800,  (fide  G.  R.  Gray;)  1805,  (fide  Gen.  Rep.)     Nee 

Calidris,  Guv.  Regn.  An.  1817. 
Arenaria,  Meyer,  1810,  (fide  G.  R.  Gray.)     Nee  Linnaei. 

Char. — Bill  stout,  straight,  about  equal  to  the  head  or  tarsus ;  tip  thick- 
ened, expanded  and  rather  hard,  the  culmen  just  posterior  to  it  somewhat 
depressed  and  hollowed.  Nostrils  situated  far  forward.  Wings  long,  pointed  ; 
tail  short,  doubly  emarginate,  central  feathers  projecting.  Tibia  bare  for  two- 
thirds  the  length  of  the  tarsus ;  toes  very  short  and  widely  margined.  Hind 
toe  wanting.  (General  characters  of  Tringa  proper,  but  without  hind  toe.) 

A  genus  well  marked  by  the  absence  of  the  hind  toe,  a  feature  entirely 
peculiar  among  Tringece.  In  other  respects  it  comes  nearest  to  Tringa  proper, 
with  which  it  has  a  very  close  affinity,  the  bill,  tarsus  and  toes,  as  well  as  the 
tibia,  having  much  the  same  proportions.  The  toes,  however,  are  even  shorter, 
and  the  tail  is  doubly  emarginate,  a  feature  scarcely  seen  in  Tringa.  The  bill 
in  its  sbort  and  stout  proportions  has  much  the  general  appearance  of  that  of 
Charadrius,  which  fact,  in  connection  with  absence  of  the  hind  toe,  has  caused 
the  single  species  of  the  genus  to  be  referred  to  the  plovers  by  some  of  the 
older  autbors.  In  all  other  respects,  however,  as  well  as  ia  general  habits,  the 
bird  is  a  true  Sandpiper. 

According  to  Gray,  Calidris  of  Cuvier,  of  1799 — 1800,  is  founded  upon  the 
T.  arenaria,  L.  The  name  must  therefore  be  employed  in  the  present  con- 
nection, though  in  1817  Cuvier  gives  T.  canutus,  L.  as  the  type  of  the  genus. 
Arenaria  of  Meyer,  of  1810,  based,  according  to  Gray,  upon  the  T.  arenaria,  is 
preoccupied  in  Botany,  that  being  the  name  of  an  old  Linnaean  genus  of  plants. 

CALIDRIS  AREXARIA  Illiger. — Sauderling. 

Tringa  arenaria,  Linnaeus,  Syst.  Nat.  1766,  i.  251.  Audubon,  Orn.  Biog.  1839, 
iii.  231,  v.  582;  id.  Syn.  1839,  237  :  id.  Birds  Amer.  1842,  v.  287,  tab.  338. 
Schlegel,  Rev.  Crit.  1846,  90. 

1861.] 


182  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ACADEMY   OP 

Trynga  tridactyla,  Pallas,  Zoog.  Rosso-As.  1811,  ii.  198. 

Charadrius  calidris,  Linnzeus,  Syst.  Nat.  1766,  i.  255.     Wilson,  Am.  Orn.  1813, 

vii.  68,  tab.  lix.  fig.  4;  id.  Ord.  Ed.  1829,  iii.  167;  id.  Brew.  Ed.  1840,  503. 
Charadrius  rubidus,  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  688.     Wilson,  Am.  Orn.  1813, 

vii.  129,  tab.  Ixiii.  fig.  3;  id.  Ord.  Ed.  1829,  iii.  170;  id.  Brewer.  Ed.  1840, 

541. 

Arenaria  vulgarist  Leisler,  (fide  G.  R.  Gray.) 
Arenaria  calidris,  Meyer,  (fide  G.  R.  Gray.)     Degland,  Ornith.  Europ.  1849,  ii. 

240.     Lambeye,  Av.  Cubal.  1850,  100. 
Calidris  arenaria,  llliger,  Prod.  1811,  249.     Temminck,  Manual,  ii.  524.     Lich- 

tenstein,  Verz.  1823,  72.     Bonaparte,  Obs.  Wilson,  1825,  v.  105.    Swainson, 

F.  B.  A.  1831,  ii.  366.     Nuttall,  Manual,  1834,  4.     Jenyns,  Manual,  1835, 

183.    Schinz.  Eur.  Faun.  1840,  i.  298.  Bonaparte,  Comp.  List.  1838,50;  id. 

Catal.  Metod.  1842,  61.     Macgillivray,  Man.  Brit.  Orn.  1842,  65.      Giraud, 

Birds  L.  I.  1844,  243.    Gray,  Genera,  1849.  iii.  581.     Bonaparte,  Revue  Grit. 

1850,  184.     Cassin,  U.  S.  Ast.  Exp.  1855,  ii.  194;  id.  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  723. 

Nilsson,  Scand.  Faun.  1858,  ii.  255.     Cooper  et  Suckley,  Nat.  Hist.  Wash. 

Terr.  1860,  241. 

Calidris  tringoides,  Vieillot,  Gal.  Ois.  1834,  ii.  95,  tab.  ccxxxiv. 
Calidris  Americana,  Brehm,  Vog.  Deut.  1831,  675,  (fide  Gen.  Rep.) 

Sp.  Char. —  Bill  short,  stout,  straight,  the  tip  much  thickened  and  expauded. 
Upper  mandible  widely,  lower  narrowly  but  distinctly,  grooved.  First  primary 
decidedly  longest.  Tail  doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers  pointed  and 
much  projecting.  Legs  troderate,  toes  very  short  and  widely  margined.  Adult 
in  spring.  Entire  upper  parts  and  neck  all  round,  variegated  with  black,  light 
ashy  and  bright  reddish ;  on  the  back  and  scapulars  each  feather  having  a  central 
black  field,  and  being  broadly  margined  and  tipped  with  ashy  or  reddish. 
Under  parts  white,  immaculate.  Outer  webs  and  tips  of  primaries  deep 
brownish  black,  inner  light  ashy.  A  white  spot  at  base  of  inner  primaries. 
Secondaries  mostly  pure  white;  the  outer  vanes  and  part  of  inner  on  the  latter 
half  dusky.  Greater  coverts  dusky,  broadly  tipped  and  narrowly  edged  with 
pure  white.  Rump,  upper  tail  coverts  and  central  tail  feathers  dusky,  tipped 
and  narrowly  edged  with  ashy  white ;  lateral  tail  feathers  very  light  ash,  nearly 
white.  Legs  and  feet  black.  Young  in  autumn.  No  traces  of  the  reddish. 
Upper  parts  very  light  ash,  each  feather  fading  into  white  on  the  edges,  and 
with  a  narrow  shaft  line  of  dusky.  Entire  under  parts  pure  white.  Scapulars 
dusky,  edged  with  whitish.  Other  parts  as  in  the  adult. 

Length  7-5  to  8,  extent  15  to  16;  wing  4-9,  tail  2-25.  Bill  about  1  inch, 
tarsus  rather  less;  middle  toe  -75. 

Habitat.—  Temperate  North  America;  South  America ;  Europe. 

In  the  above  diagnosis  I  have  given  the  breeding  plumage  and  that  of  the 
young  the  first  autumn ;  but  a  more  usual  winter  dress  differs  from  either. 
There  are  traces  of  the  reddish  on  the  upper  parts  generally  and  on  the  breast. 
Each  feather  above  is  brownish-black,  regularly  indented  and  tipped  with  ashy 
white,  thus  giving  to  the  upper  parts  the  appearance  of  being  evenly  mottled. 
There  is  a  buff  tinge  on  the  breast,  and  also  on  the  tips  of  the  rump  feathers. 
The  bend  of  the  wing  is  nearly  as  dark  as  in  the  adult.  At  all  times  the  under 
parts  of  the  bird  from  the  jugulum  are  pure  white. 

^As  stated  in  the  remarks  upon  the  genus,  the  peculiarities  of  the  form  of  this 
bird  huve  caused  it  to  be  considered  as  a  Charadrius  by  some  of  the  older 
authors.  Linnaeus  erred  so  much  as  to  refer  it  to  that  genus  in  one  state  of 
plumage,  and  to  classify  it  as  a  Sandpiper  in  another.  Wilson,  though  retain- 
ing the  species  in  Charadrius,  remarks  upon  its  evident  affinity  to  the  latter 
group.  The  Charadrius  rubidus  of  Gmelin  and  Wilson  represents  the  adult- 
breeding  plumage,  and  the  C.  calidris  of  the  same  authors,  the  young  bird.  But 
the  peculiarities  of  the  bird  are  so  great  that  it  was  very  early  removed  from 

[July, 


NATURAL    SCIENCES   OF    PHILADELPHIA.  183 

both  Tringa  and  Charadrius,  and  a  genus  Calidris  formed  for  its  reception.  In 
1811,  Illiger  called  the  bird  C.  arenaria,  which  is  the  name  generally  employed 
by  ornithologists  since  that  date.  Audubon,  however,  in  all  his  works  retains 
the  species  in  Tringa.  I  have  found  but  two  instances  of  the  use  of  Arenaria 
calidris,  Mey.,  which  are  those  given  in  the  list  of  synonyms.  Calidris  tringoides 
of  Vieillot  is  undoubtedly  the  present  bird,  as  is  also  (fide  Gen.  Rep  )  the  C. 
Americana  of  Brehm. 

ARQUATELLA  Baird. 
Arquatella,  Baird.  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  714.     Typus  Tringa  maritima,  Briinn. 

Char. — Bill  variable,  always  longer  than  the  head,  straight  or  slightly  de- 
curved,  very  slender,  much  compressed,  tip  scarcely  expanded.  Groove  in 
lower  mandible  shallow,  sometimes  nearly  obsolete.  Wings  long,  pointed. 
Tail  moderate,  cuneiform.  Tibial  feathers  very  long,  covering  the  joint. 
Tarsus  extremely  abbreviated,  much  shorter  than  the  bill  or  middle  toe.  Toes 
very  long,  broadly  margined  and  flattened  beneath.  Hind  toe  very  short:  claws 
short  and  blunt. 

In  the  remarkably  abbreviated  tarsus,  much  surpassed  by  the  long  toes, — in 
the  lengthened  tibial  feathers,  cuneiform  tail  and  slender  compressed  bill, — Ar- 
quatella  constitutes  perhaps  the  most  marked  section  of  the  Tringece,  and  one 
well  worthy  of  full  generic  rank.  Indeed  it  is  a  little  remarkable  that  it  was 
not  earlier  separated  from  the  other  allied  genera.  By  most  authors  it  has  been 
considered  as  a  true  Tringa,  and  placed  in  close  connection  with  T.  canutus. 
Bonaparte,  however,  gives  it  as  a  Pelidna,  though  Cuvier,  in  establishing  that 
genus,  retains  it  in  his  Calidris,  (of  1817  =  Tringa  proper.)  Besides  its  striking 
peculiarities  of  form,  the  colors  of  the  single  species  is  very  different  from  that 
of  any  other  known  Sandpiper.  The  name  Arquatella  is  Pallas's  specific  appel- 
lation of  the  bird. 

ARQUATELLA  MARITIMA  (Briinn.)  Baird. — Purple  Sandpiper. 

Tringa  maritima,  Briinnich,  Orn.  Bor.  1764,  54.     Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  pars 

ii.  678.     Latham,  Ind.  Orn.  1796,  ii.  731.     Pennant,  Arct.  Zool.  1785,  481. 

Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet.  1819,  xxxiv.  471.     Temminck,  Manual,   1820,  ii.  619. 

Lesson,  Manual,  1828,  ii.  283.     Swainson,  F.  B.  A.  1831,  ii.  382.     Nuttall, 

Manual,  1834,  ii.  115.     Jenyns,  Manual,  1835,  211.     Audubon,  Orn.  Biog. 

1835,   iii.  558,  tab.  284;  id.  Syn.  1839,  233;  id.  Birds  Am.  1842,  v.  261, 

tab.  330.     Macgillivray,  Man.  Brit.  Birds,  1842,  ii.  67.     Schinz,  Eur.  Faun. 

1840,  i.  324.     Schlegel,  Rev.  Crit.  1844,  88.     Giraud,  Birds  L.  I.  1844,  236. 

Dekay,  N.  Y.  Fauna,  1844,  ii.  237,  tab.  87,  fig.  98.     Hollbol,  Fauna  Green. 

1846,  39.     Degland,  Orn.  Eur.  1849,  ii.  222.     Gray,  Genera,  1849,  iii.  579. 

Parzudaki,  Cat.  Ois.  Eur.  1856,  14.     Meyer,  Brit.  Birds,  v.  1857,  80.     Nils- 
son,  Scand.  Faun.  1858,  ii.  235. 
Pelidna  maritima,  Bonaparte,  Comp.  List,  1838,  49;  id.  Rev.  Grit.  1850,  185  ;  id. 

Cat.  Met.  1842,  60. 
9 Tringa  striata,  Linnaeus,  Syst.  Nat.  1766,  i.  248.     Latham,  Ind.  Orn.  1790,  ii. 

733.     Pennant,  Arct.  Zool.  1785,  ii.  472.     Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  pars 

ii.  672. 
Tringa  undata,  Briinnich,  Orn.  Bor.  1764,  55.     Latham,  Ind.  Orn.  1790,  ii.  732. 

Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  pars  ii.  678.     Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet.  1819,  xxxiv. 

470. 

Tringa  nigricans,  Montagu,  Linn.  Trans.  1796,  iv.  40,  (fide  Gen.  Rep.) 
Trynga  arquatdla,  Pallas,  Zoog.  Rosso-As.  1811,  ii.  190. 
Tringa  canadensis,  Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet.  1719,  xxxiv.  453. 
Tringa  (Arquatella)  maritima,  Cassin,  Gen.  Kep.  1858,  717. 

Sp.  Char. — Form  and  proportions  typical  of  the  genus.  Adult.  Entire  upper 
parts  a  lustrous  very  dark  bluish  or  blackish  ash,  with  purple  and  violet 

1861.J 


184:  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ACADEMY  OP 

reflections,  and  each  feather  with  a  lighter  border.  Greater  and  lesser  wing 
coverts,  tertials  and  scapulars  edged  and  tipped  with  white.  Secondaries 
mostly  white.  Primaries  deep  dusky,  the  shafts  dull  white  except  at  tip,  where 
they  are  black.  Upper  tail  coverts  and  central  tail  feathers  brownish  black 
with  purplish  reflections,  the  outer  pair  of  the  former  white  barred  with  dusky. 
Lateral  tail  feathers  light  ashy.  Jugulum  and  breast  bluish  ash,  each  feather 
of  the  latter  edged  with  white,  and  the  ash  extending  along  the  sides  beneath 
the  wings.  Rest  of  under  parts  white,  immaculate.  Legs,  feet  and  bill  at  base 
light  flesh-color;  rest  of  bill  greenish  black.  Young  in  September,  Upper  parts 
much  the  color  of  the  adult,  but  with  each  feather  broadly  edged  and  tipped 
with  light  buff  or  reddish  yellow.  Light  edging  of  wing  coverts  ashy  instead 
of  pure  white.  Under  parts  everywhere  thickly  mottled  with  ashy  and  dusky, 
deepest  on  the  breast  and  jugulum. 

Length  8  to  9,  extent  15  to  16,  wing  about  5,  tail  2-6.     Bill  above  (average) 
1-2  ;  tarsus  -9;  middle  toe  1-1  ;  tibia  bare  -45. 

Habitat. — Atlantic  coast  from  Greenland  to  Florida.  Europe. 
Except  in  the  very  immature  plumage  given  above,  this  Sandpiper  varies  but 
little  in  color,  the  difference  between  adult  and  young  being  chiefly  in  the 
depth  and  intensity  of  the  tints.  As  the  bird  advances  toward  maturity,  the 
upper  parts  become  darker  and  more  lustrous,  the  edgings  of  the  wing  coverts 
and  scapulars  more  conspicuous  and  better  defined.  The  mottling  of  the  under 
parts  is  gradually  restricted  till  it  forms  the  well  defined,  uniform  dark  ash  of 
the  jugulum  and  breast,  the  sides  being  always  sparsely  streaked,  and  the  rest 
of  the  under  parts  white,  immaculate.  The  youngest  specimens,  however,  show 
a  very  decided  greenish  or  purplish  lustre.  While  the  length  and  proportions 
of  the  tibia,  tarsus  and  toes  are  remarkably  constant,  the  size  of  the  whole  bird, 
and  more  particularly  that  of  the  bill,  varies  greatly.  The  difference  in  the 
length  of  the  bill  of  five  specimens  now  before  me  amounts  to  three-tenths  of 
an  inch,  and  in  that  of  the  whole  bird  to  considerably  more  than  an  inch.  A 
specimen  from  Greenland  is  the  smallest,  having  the  wing  four-tenths  of  an 
inch  shorter  than  in  oce  from  New  Hampshire.  In  this  specimen  the  legs  and 
feet  are  dusky-green  instead  of  flesh-colored,  and  the  bill  is  scarcely  lighter  at 
base. 

Owing  to  the  striking  peculiarities  of  form  and  color  which  this  species  pre- 
sents, there  has  been,  contrary  to  what  is  usually  the  case  with  the  Sandpipers 
known  to  the  earlier  authors,  comparatively  little  confusion  regarding  it.  As 
far  as  I  have  been  able  to  ascertain,  it  has  been  considered  as  a  true  Tringa  by 
all  authors  except  Bonaparte  (who  refers  it  to  Pelidna)  up  to  the  time  of  the 
General  Report,  in  which  work  it  is  very  properly  made  the  type  of  a  distinct 
genus.  Most  authors  have  also  adopted  the  original  specific  appellation  given 
by  Briinnich  in  1764;  and  I  have  not  met  with  any  other  name  in  works  pub- 
lished since  1819,  in  which  year  it  is  given  as  "  Le  tringa  cendre  du  Canada, 
Tringa  Canadensis,  Lath."  by  Vieillot.  There  can  be  no  doubt  with  regard  to 
the  bird  which  is  referred  to  under  this  head ;  for  after  a  description  which 
applies  well  to  the  usual  immature  plumage,  (not  that  of  the  very  young  given 
in  the  diagnosis,)  the  author  adds,  "mais  ce  qui  distingue  cet  oiseau  de  ceux 
de  son  genre,  c'est  d'avoir  les  jambes  couvertes  de  plumes  jusqu'  au  talon,  et 
me  me  au-dessous," — a  feature  which  exclusively  characterizes  the  A.  marilima. 
Tringa  undata  of  Briinnich,  Gmelin,  &c.,  is  considered  as  the  young  of  this 
species  in  the  plumage  given  in  the  diagnosis,  where  the  light  borders  of  the 
feathers  of  the  upper  parts  and  the  transverse  mottling  of  the  lower  give  to  the 
bird  a  somewhat  wavy  appearance.  Tringa  striata  of  Linnaeus,  Gmelin,  &c.,  is 
generally  supposed  to  refer  to  this  species.  Pallas  gives  it  as  Trynga  arqua- 
tella,  an  appellation  from  which  the  generic  name  is  derived. 

ANCYLOCHEILUS  Kaup. 

Erolia,  Vieillot,  Analyse,  1816,  55  ;  Typus  Scolopax  mbarquata  'Guld.,  secundum 
G.  R.  Gray  et  Gen.  Rep.  (Erolia,  Vieill.,  Gal.  1834  =  Erolia.) 


NATURAL   SCIENCES   OP   PHILADELPHIA.  185 

Ancylocheilus,  Kaup,  Sk.  Ent.  Eur.  Thierw.  1839,  50 ;  Typus  Tringa  subarquata, 
Temm, 

Char. — Bill  much  longer  than  the  head,  slender,  compressed,  considerably 
decurved,  the  tip  not  expanded,  and  rather  hard.  Grooves  in  both  mandibles 
very  narrow,  but  distinct.  Wings  long,  pointed.  Tail  very  short,  nearly  even. 
Legs  long,  slender;  tarsus  and  tibia  both  lengthened,  the  latter  exposed  for 
nearly  or  quite  half  the  length  of  the  former.  Toes  moderate,  slender,  slightly 
margined,  the  middle  one  about  three-fourths  the  tarsus. 

The  essential  characters  of  this  well  marked  genus  lie  in  the  long,  slender, 
decurved  bill,  with  hard  unexpanded  tip,  the  long  slender  legs,  and  very  short, 
nearly  even  tail.  In  addition,  it  may  be  stated  that  the  groove  in  the  upper 
mandible,  except  just  anterior  to  the  nostrils,  is  very  narrow,  though  deep ;  the 
feathers  extend  between  the  rami  scarcely  further  than  those  on  the  side  of  the 
lower  mandible,  which  exceed  those  on  the  upper  but  little ;  the  tip  of  the  bill 
is  pointed  and  acute ;  the  claws  are  all  very  slender  and  acute.  In  form  this 
genus  approaches  nearest  to  Pelidna,  from  which,  however,  it  is  perfectly  dis- 
tinct and  easily  recognizable.  The  bill  of  the  latter  is  much  stouter,  depressed 
instead  of  compressed,  and  the  feathers  extend  to  some  distance  between  the 
rami  of  the  lower  jaw.  The  tail  is  longer  and  deeply  doubly  emarginate.  An 
important  difference  is  to  be  found  in  the  legs,  in  the  proportion  of  the  tibia, 
tarsus  and  toes.  In  Pelidna  the  toe  is  nearly  equal  to  the  tarsus,  which  is  con- 
siderably more  abbreviated  than  in  Ancylocheilus.  The  tibiae  appear  to  be 
exposed  to  a  less  extent. 

According  to  Gray  and  to  the  General  Report,  Erolia  of  Vieillot  (Anal.  1816, 
ut  supra)  is  founded  upon  the  present  bird.  With  every  disposition  to  rely 
upon  such  authority,  in  a  careful  examination  of  the  characters  of  the  genus  in 
in  that  work  and  in  the  Nouv.  Diet.  (1817,)  as  well  as  of  jErolia  in  the  Galerie, 
(1834,)  I  have  been  unable  to  reconcile  them  with  those  of  the  bird  now  under 
consideration.  In  all  these  works,  apparently  the  most  important  characters 
are  stated  to  be  the  absence  of  the  hind  toe,  and  the  presence  of  a  membrane 
between  the  outer  and  middle,  neither  of  which  features  exist  in  the  Scolopax 
subarquata,  Guld.  In  the  Galerie,  reference  is  made  to  the  Nouv.  Diet.,  (x.  page 
409,)  where  the  genus  is  fully  characterized.  A  portion  of  the  diagnosis  is 
as  follows : — "  Erolie,  Erolia  Vieill.  Genre  de  1'Ordre  des  Echassiers,  et  de  la 
famille  des  ^Egialites. — trois  doigts  devant,  point  derritre ;  les  exterieurs  unis  & 
la  base  par  une  membrane,  1'enterne  libre.  Ce  genre  ne  content  qu'une  espece 
qui  se  trouve  en  Afrique,  et  dont  on  ne  connoit  que  la  depouille/''  It  will  be 
seen  that  the  author  places  the  bird  ("  dont  on  ne  connoit  que  la  depouille  ") 
not  only  in  a  different  genus,  but  in  a  family  entirely  distinct  from  the  Sand- 
pipers;  and  the  description  of  "  L'Erolie  varie,  Erolia  variegata,  Vieill.,  which 
follows,  I  cannot  identify  with  any  plumage  of  Tringa  subarquata  with  which  I 
am  acquainted.  It  should  also  be  borne  in  mind  that  Vieillot  (Nouv.  Diet.,  ut 
infra)  correctly  describes  the  present  bird  under  the  name  of  "  Le  tringa  cocorli, 
T.  subarquala,  Temm.,"  and  no  reference  whatever  is  made  to  Erolia.  Now,  it 
is  by  no  means  impossible  that  Erolia  variegata  may  have  been  positively 
identified  with  T.  subarquata  by  actual  examination  of  the  type  specimen,  or 
otherwise ;  but  even  in  that  case  I  do  not  think  the  name  should  be  adopted. 
The  position  of  Erolia  variegata  in  the  system  is  very  different  from  that  which, 
Tringa  subarquata  occupies,  and  the  characters  of  the  genus  as  published  to  the 
world  are  widely  at  variance  with  those  presented  by  that  bird. 

From  these  considerations  therefore  I  have  adopted  Ancylocheilus  of  Kaup, 
(1829,)  concerning  which  there  is  no  doubt. 

ANCYLOCHBILUS  SUBARQUATA  (Guld.)  Kaup.— Curlew  Sandpiper. 

Scolopai  mbarquata,  Guldenstaedt,  Nov.  Com.  Petrop.  1775,  xix.  471,  tab.  xviii. 

fide  Gen.  Rep.     Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  658. 
1861.] 


186  PROCEEDINGS  OP  THE  ACADEMY  OF 

Scolopax  africanus,  Gtnelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  655. 

Tringa  subarquata,  Temminck,  Man.  1820,  ii.  609.  Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet,  xxxiv. 
1819,  454.  Nuttall,  Man.  1834,  ii.  104.  Jenyns,  Man.  1835,  208.  Audubon, 
Orn.  Biog.  1835,  iii.  444;  id.  Birds  Amer.  1842,  v.  269,  tab.  333;  id.  Syn. 
1839.  Schinz,  Eur.  Faun.  1840,  i,  320.  Maegillivray,  Man.  Brit.  Orn.  1842, 
ii.  71.  Giraud,  Birds  L.  I.  1844,  237.  Schlegel,  Rev.  Grit.  1844,  88.  Dekay, 
N.  Y.  Fauna,  1844,  239,  tab.  95,  fig.  213.  Gray,  Genera,  1849,  iii.  579. 
Degland,  Orn.  Eur.  1849,  ii.  225.  Meyer,  Brit.  Birds,  1857,  v.  91.  Nilsson, 
Scand.  Faun.  1858,  ii.  239. 

Pelidna  subarquata,  Bonaparte,  Comp.  List,  1838,  50;  id.  Rev.  Grit:  1850,  185. 
Ancylocheilus  subarquata,  Kaup,  Eur.  Thierw.  1829.     Parzudaki,  Cat.  Ois.  Eur. 

1856,  14. 

Numenius  subarquata,  Bechstein,  Nat.  Deut.  iv.  148,  fide  Temminck. 
Numenius  pygmceus,  Bechstein,  Nat.  Deut.  iv.  135,  fide  Temminck. 
Numenius  ferrugineus,  Meyer,  fide  Vieillot. 
Numenius  africanus,  Latham,  Ind.  Orn.  1790,  ii.  712. 
Erolia  variegata,  Vieillot,  Anal.  1816;  id.  Nouv.  Diet.  1817,  x.  409,  secundum 

Gen.  Rep.     Lesson,  Man.  1828,  ii.  302. 

JEroliavaria,  Vieillot,  Gal.  des  Ois.  1834,  ii.  89,  tab.  ccxxxi. ;  (=Erolia  variegata.) 
Falcinellns  cursorius,  Temminck,  fide  Parzudaki. 
Tringa  (Tringa)  subarquata,  Bonaparte,  Speech.  Comp.  1827,  62. 
Pelidna  (Ancylocheilus)  subarquata,  Bonaparte,  Cat.  Met,  1842,  60. 
Tringa  (Erolia)  subarquata,  Cassin,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  718. 

Sp.  Char. — Form  typical  of  the  genus.  Adult.  Crown  of  head  and  entire 
upper  parts  lustrous  greenish  black,  each  feather  tipped  and  deeply  indented 
•with  bright  yellowish  red.  Wing  coverts  ashy  brown,  each  feather  with  a 
shaft  line  of  dusky  and  with  reddish  edging.  Primaries  deep  dusky,  their 
shafts  brown  at  base  and  black  at  tip,  the  central  portion  nearly  white.  Upper 
tail  coverts  white  with  broad  bars  of  dusky,  and  tinged  at  their  extremity  with 
reddish.  Tail  light  greyish  with  greenish  reflections.  Sides  of  the  neck  and 
entire  under  parts  uniform  deep  brownish  red.  Under  tail  coverts  barred  with 
dusky.  Axillars  and  under  wing  coverts  white,  Bill  and  legs  greenish  black. 
Young  in  autumn.  Crown  of  head  and  back  brownish  black,  with  a  slight 
greenish  lustre,  each  feather  edged  with  white  or  reddish  yellow.  Rump  plain 
dusky,  upper  tail  coverts  white.  Wing  coverts  with  broad  greyish-white 
borders.  Tail  light  ashy,  edged  and  tipped  with  white,  the  central  feathers 
with  a  subterminal  dusky  border  in  addition.  Under  parts  entirely  white,  the 
breast  and  sides  of  the  neck  finely  streaked  with  dusky,  the  former  with  a  light 
buff  tinge. 

Length  8-5,  wing  4-9.     Bill  (average)  1-5.     Tarsus  1-3  ;  toe  -9;  tibia  bare  -7. 

Habitat. — "Atlantic  coast  of  United  States;  rare.  Europe,  Asia,  Africa." 
(Gen.  Rep.) 

The  variations  in  both  plumage  and  dimensions  which  this  species  presents 
are  very  great,  fully  equal  to  those  exhibited  by  Tringa  canutus.  I  have  given 
above  the  colors  of  the  adult  and  of  the  young  of  the  first  fall,  between  which 
there  may  be  found  every  gradation,  more  especially  in  reference  to  the  red  of 
the  under  parts,  which  at  different  ages  appears  as  mottling  of  greater  or  less 
exteet.  The  species  may,  however,  be  easily  recognised  in  every  stage  of 
plumage  by  its  generic  characters.  The  single  American  specimen  before  me 
differs  from  European  skins  in  a  shorter  stouter  bill,  in  a  shorter  tarsus  and 
toes,  and  in  a  remarkably  abbreviated  hind  toe. 

There  has  been  considerable  confusion  among  writers  with  regard  to  the 
synonymy  of  this  species.  It  has  received  quite  a  variety  of  both  generic  and 
specific  appellations,  and  from  its  many  changes  of  plumage  several  nominal 
species  have  arisen.  The  bird  was  first  mentioned,  in  1775,  by  Guldenstaedt, 
(Nov.  Comm.  ut  supra,)  who  introduced  it  under  the  name  of  Scolopax  subar- 
quata. This  specific  appellation  is  the  one  which  has  been  employed  by  most 

[July; 


'  NATURAL   SCIENCES   OF   PHILADELPHIA.  187 

authors.  It  has  been  placed  in  seven  different  genera, — Scolopax,  Numenius, 
Tringa,  Falcinellus,  Pelidna,  Ancylocheilus  and  (according  to  Gen.  Rep.)  Erolia. 
It  was  probably  the  long,  slender,  decurved  bill  which  caused  some  of  the 
earlier  authors  to  consider  it  as  a  Numenius.  The  Numenius  subarquata,  Bechst., 
or  the  Scolopax  subarquata,  Gm.,  is  the  summer  plumage  of  this  species,  and 
the  Numenius  Africanus,  Lath.,  or  the  Scolopax  Africanus,  Gm.,  the  winter.  The 
N.  ferrugineus,  Mey.  is  this  species,  according  to  Vieillot ;  and  Temminck  also 
gives  N.  pygmceus,  Bechst.  as  a  synonym,  considering  it  as  the  young  before  the 
first  moult.  The  "Red  Sandpiper"  of  Latham  and  Pennant  refers  to  this 
species,  though  in  the  synonymy  the  former  gives  T.  Icelandica,  Linn,  and  T. 
ferruginea,  Briinn.,  both  of  which  names  are  synonyms  of  T.  canutus.  The 
relationships  of  Erolia  variegata  or  jErolia  vana  have  already  been  discussed 
under  the  head  of  Ancylocheilus. 

PELIDNA  Cuvier. 

?  t  Schceniclus,  MCE  bring,  Gen.  Av.  1752,  77. 

Pelidna,  Cuvier,  Regne  Anim.  1817,  490.     Typus  T.  cinclus,  L. 

Char.  Bill  stout,  much  longer  than  the  head  or  tarsus,  decurved,  depressed, 
tip  somewhat  expanded  and  punctulate.  Grooves  in  both  mandibles  very  deep 
and  distinct.  Wings  moderate  ;  tertials  long,  narrow  and  flowing.  Tail  rather 
long,  deeply  doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers  projecting.  Legs  mode- 
rate, or  rather  long.  Tarsus  but  little  if  any  longer  than  the  middle  toe.  Bare 
portion  of  tibia  more  than  half  the  tarsus.  Toes  rather  long,  and  narrowly 
margined. 

The  essential  characters  of  this  genus  lie  in  the  long,  stout,  decurved  bill, 
longer  than  the  head  or  tarsus,  and  the  tarsus  but  little  longer  than  the  middle 
toe.  approaching  in  this  respect  to  Actodromas,  to  which,  in  the  doubly  emar- 
ginate tail  and,  to  some  extent,  the  general  pattern  of  coloration  and  changes 
of  plumage,  it  is  still  more  nearly  related.  Its  affinities  to  Ancylocheilus,  which 
are  close,  will  be  found  discussed  under  that  head.  The  genus  is  very  variable 
in  the  length  of  its  bill,  though  the  legs,  as  usual  among  the  Tringece,  are  pretty 
constant.  The  colors  of  the  two  species  of  the  group  are  subject  to  many  and 
great  variations  dependent  upon  age  and  season,  which  in  each  have  given  rise 
to  a  second  nominal  species.  In  addition  to  these,  minor  differences  in  size 
and  color  have  been  made  the  grounds  of  specific  distinction  by  some  European 
writers.  With  these,  however,  the  present  monograph  has  nothing  to  do,  since, 
in  according  to  the  American  bird  specific  distinction  from  that  of  Europe,  the 
intricate  and  difficult  synonymy  of  the  latter  is  excluded. 

The  genus  Pelidna,  of  Cuvier,  (1817),  has  been  employed  by  different  writers 
in  a  very  unnatural  manner  to  designate  the  smaller  Sandpipers  indiscrimi- 
nately, nearly  all  the  species  having  been  at  one  time  or  another  included  in  it, 
grouped  together  without  the  slightest  regard  to  their  natural  affinities.  This 
is  peihaps  due  in  a  measure  to  the  very  loose  manner  in  which  it  is  character- 
ized by  Cuvier,  who  merely  says,  in  instituting  the  genus, — "  les  Pelidnes  ne 
sont  que  de  petites  maubeches,  a  bee  un  peu  plus  long  que  la  tete,  et  dont.  les 
pieds  n'ont  ni  bordures  ni  palmures."  The  genus  has  in  consequence  fallen 
somewhat  into  disrepute  among  later  ornithologists,  who  generally  avoid  the 
use  of  it ;  but  still  it  must  stand  for  the  type  upon  which  it  waa  founded  (T. 
cinclus,  L.)  if  no  other  name  has  been  previously  proposed  for  the  same  group. 
Schceniclus,  of  Moehring,  (1752),  is  said  by  some  authors  to  refer  to  that  type  ; 
but  I  can  find  no  characters  which  restrict  it  to  the  T.  cinclus.  The  brief  diag- 
nosis is  as  follows :  "  Rostrum  digitis  cum  ungue  fere  aequale.  Pes  tetradac- 
tyla.  Membrana  dimidium  primum  articulum  inter  extimum  et  medium  digitum 
occupans."  Now  as  the  bill  is  not  "  about  equal  to  the  middle  toe  and  claw," 
but  very  much  longer,  and  as  there  is  scarcely  the  rudiment  of  a  membrane 
between  the  outer  and  middle  toe,  which  does  not  nearly  occupy  "  half  the  first 
joint,"  the  only  character  left  which  really  belongs  to  the  T.  Alpina  is  "  pes 

1861.] 


188  PROCEEDINGS    OP    THE    ACADEMY    OP 

tetradactyla,"  which  of  course  applies  equally  well  to  any  other  Sandpiper 
except  Calidris  arenaria. 

In  the  uncertainty,  therefore,  it  may  be  best  to  use  Pelidna  of  Cuvier,  which, 
although  loosely  characterized,  is  definitely  located  by  the  mentioning  of  the 
type  upon  which  it  is  founded. 

PBLIDNA  AMERICANA    (Cass.)  Cones. — American  Dunlin. 

Tringa  alpina,  Wilson,  Am.  Orn.  1813,  vii.  25,  tab.  Ivi.  fig.  2  ;  id.  Ord.  Ed.  1829, 

iii.  136  ;   id.  Brewer  Ed.  1840,  475,  fig.  220  ;    (nee  Linnaei,  nee  al.   script. 

Europ.)     Swainson,  F.  B.  A.  1831,  ii.  383.     Nuttal,  Manual,  1834,  ii.  106. 

Audubon,  Orn.  Biog.  1835,  iii.  580,  tab.  290  ;  id.  Syn.  1839,  234  ;  id.  .Birds 

Amer.  1842,  v.  266,  tab.  332.     Girard,  Birds  L.  I.  1844,  228.     Newberry, 

P.  R.  R.  Expl.  1857,  vi.  100. 

Tringa  (Tringa)  alpina,  Bonaparte,  Obs.  Wils.  1825,  v.  92. 
Tringa  cinclus,  Wilson,  Am.   Orn.    1813,  vii.  3S,  tab.  Ivii.  fig.  3  ;   id.   Ord.  Ed. 

1329,  iii.  138  ;  id.    Brewer,  Ed.  1840,  484,  fig.  225  ;  (nee    Linnaci,  nee   al. 

script.  Europ.)     Dekay,  N.  Y.  Faun.  1844,  240,  tab.  84,  fig.  292. 
Pelidna  cinclus,  Bonaparte,  Oomp.  List,  1838,  50. 
Tringa  alpina,   var.  Americana,    Cooper  et   Suckley,  Nat.    Hist.  Wash.   Terr. 

1860,  239. 
Tringa  (Schceniclus)  alpina,  var.  Americana,  Cassin,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  719. 

Sp.  char.  Larger  than  P.  alpina.  Bill  longer,  stouter  and  more  decurved 
than  in  the  type  of  the  genus.  Wings  moderate,  pointed,  first  primary  decided- 
ly longest.  Tail  rather  long,  deeply  doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers 
projecting,  the  upper  coverts  much  lengthened.  Legs  much  longer  than  in  P. 
alpina,  the  tarsus  decidedly  longer  than  the  middle  toe.  Adult  in  breeding  plu- 
mage.— Crown  of  head  and  upper  parts  generally  bright  chestnut  red,  the 
feathers  with  a  central  field  of  black,  and  on  the  scapulars  with  whitish  mar- 
gins. Lesser  wing  coverts  plain  greyish  ash,  each  feather  with  a  shaft  line  of 
dusky  and  with  a  light  border;  greater  broadly  tipped  with  white.  Outer  vanes 
and  tips  of  primaries  deep  dusky,  almost  black,  those  of  the  inner  edged  with 
white  towards  their  bases  ;  inner  vanes  of  all  light  ashy.  Secondaries  mostly 
white.  Tertials  with  the  rump  and  upper  tail  coverts  brownish  black,  with 
either  plain  greyish  or  light  reddish  edges,  the  outer  pair  of  the  latter  mostly 
white.  Central  tail  feathers  brownish  black,  the  rest  light  greyish  ash.  Fore- 
head, line  over  the  eye  and  whole  under  parts  white,  the  jugulum  with  nume- 
rous longitudinal  lines  and  streaks  of  brownish  black,  and  the  belly  with  a  very 
broad  bar  of  pure  black.  Legs,  feet  and  bill  black.  Adult  in  winter,  and  young. — 
Upper  parts  a  uniform  dark  ash,  generally  with  traces  of  the  reddish  on  the 
scapulars,  and  the  feathers  with  darker  shaft  lines.  White  edgings  of  inner 
primaries  very  conspicuous.  Jugulum  with  an  ashy  suffusion,  and  with  nume- 
rous illy  defined,  blended  streaks  of  dusky.  Rest  of  under  parts  pure  white. 

Length  8-5,  extent  14-5,  wing  4«9,  tail  2-3.  Bill  above  1'6,  tarsus  1-1,  middle 
toe  -95,  tibia  bare,  -6. 

Habitat.     Continent  of  North  America. 

Although  it  may  seem  a  hazardous  undertaking  to  separate  the  Dunlins  of 
America  and  Europe,  yet  on  the  authority  of  that  most  accurate  ornithologist, 
Mr.  Cassin,  and  from  the  testimony  of  numerous  specimens  from  both  countries 
before  me,  I  cannot  but  come  to  the  conclusion  that  they  are  specifically  dis- 
tinct. The  uniformly  larger  size,  the  disproportionately  longer,  stouter  and 
more  decurved  bill,  and  the  invariably  longer  and  differently  proportioned  legs, 
are  discrepancies  which  can  hardly  be  allowed  to  exist  in  the  same  species. 
The  constancy  of  these  differences  in  so  notoriously  variable  a  bird  as  the  pre- 
sent, as  well  as  their  radical  nature,  are  indications  which  cannot  be  neglected. 
The  distinctive  characters  being  entirely  those  of  size  and  proportion,  the  com- 
parative measurements  of  three  specimens  from  each  country  is  subjoined  : 

[July, 


NATURAL    SCIENCES   OF  PHILADELPHIA. 


189 


Name. 

Length. 

Extent. 

Wing. 

Bill. 

Tarsus. 

Toe. 

•98 
1-05 
•95 
•90 
•88 
•85 

8-50* 
9-00* 
8-25* 
7-90f 
8-1  Of 
8-40J 
>f  collectt 

15-40* 
14-00* 

>r.    tOfs 

4-70 
5-05 
4-65 
4.25 
4-70 
4-50 
kin  ;  app 

1-50 
1-74 
1-54 
1-40 
1-42 
1-40 
roximat 

1-08 
1-13 
1-03 
•90 
1-02 
•92 
e  only. 

<:                a 

«                       {.' 

«           <( 

"        •<     ("  Schinzii,")... 
*  Fresh  ;  on  authority  c 

The  comparative  diagnoses  would  be  briefly  as  follows : 

P.  alpina.  Length  8  inches.  Bill,  average,  1-4.  Tarsus  but  little  if  any 
longer  than  middle  toe.  Length  of  tarsus  and  toe  1-75. 

P.  Americana.  Larger;  length  8-5  inches.  Bill  average  1-7;  disproportion- 
ately longer,  stouter,  more  decurved.  Tarsus  decidedly  longer  than  the  middle 
toe  ;  legs  considerably  longer;  length  of  tarsus  and  toe  2  inches. 

Among  the  specimens  from  the  west  coast  there  appear  to  be  two  very  de- 
cided types.  One  is  that  common  to  the  Atlantic  coast,  in  which  the  bill  mea- 
sures on  an  average  1-50  of  an  inch  in  length,  and  the  wing  4-60.  Of  the  other 
there  are  three  specimens  before  me,  collected  at  different  times,  absolutely 
identical  in  size  and  proportions,  and  differing  greatly  both  from  eastern  speci- 
mens and  all  others  from  the  west  coast.  In  these  the  bill  measures  1-72  of  an 
inch,  being  nearly  a  fourth  of  an  inch  longer  than  in  P.  Americana  ;  the  wing 
is  nearly  five  inches ;  the  legs  are  somewhat  longer,  and  the  whole  bird  con- 
siderably larger.  The  differences,  indeed,  between  these  specimens  and  the 
average  of  P.  Americana  are  nearly  if  not  quite  as  great  as  those  which  separate 
that  latter  species  from  the  alpina.  These  facts  are  of  importance,  and  would 
seem  to  point  to  one  of  the  following  considerations  : — either  the  three  specimens 
alluded  to  belong  to  a  species  distinct  from  the  Americana,  or  that  they  repre- 
sent one  extreme,  and  P.  alpina,  or  more  properly  T.  Schinzii,  Brehm.,*  the 
other  of  one  and  the  same  species,  of  which  P.  Americana  is  the  intermediate 
form.  I  cannot  but  think,  however,  that  the  former  supposition  is  the  most 
probable ;  for  it  seems  almost  impossible  in  one  species  there  should  be  such 
variations,  and  those  too  of  such  a  radical  nature  as  are  presented  by  specimens 
of  Pelidna  from  different  localities.  Thus,  to  consider  a  bird  in  which  the  bill 
measures  1-20,  the  leg  1-75,  and  the  wing  4-40,  (as  in  the  smallest  specimen  of 
Pelidna  before  me,)  as  specifically  identical  with  one  in  which  these  parts  were 
respectively  1-75,  2-10  and  4-95,  would  be  almost  without  a  parallel  in  orni- 
thology ;  while,  at  the  same  time,  if  they  be  considered  distinct,  it  is  impossible 
to  avoid  recognizing  also  the  intermediate  form.  But  if,  as  I  think  has  been 
pretty  conclusively  shown,  the  American  bird  is  distinct  from  the  European, 
then  the  west  coast  specimens  above  referred  to  are  equally  worthy  of  specific 
distinction.!  Still,  with  but  three  specimens  before  me,  I  do  not  venture,  in 
the  case  of  so  variable  a  bird  as  a  Sandpiper,  to  present  it  as  distinct;  but 
should  the  above  differences  be  found  constant,  and  showing  no  graduation 
towards  the  Americana,  I  should  have  no  hesitation  in  so  doing.  In  the  event 
of  their  proving  really  distinct.  I  would  propose  the  name  of  Paciflca  as  an  ap- 
propriate one. 

*  With  but  a  single  specimen  of  Tringa  Schinzii  before  me,  I  am  not  prepared  to  ex- 
press any  opinion  with  reference  to  its  relationships  to  Pelidna  alpina.  In  this  paper  I 
consider  it  as  merely  a  smaller  race  of  the  latter,  entirely  upon  the  high  authority  of  the 
General  Report. 

t  In  the  field  notes  of  the  late  Dr.  C.  B.  R.  Kennerly,  I  find  the  opinion  expressed  that 
they  are  distinct;  and  I  am  informed  by  Dr.  Geo.  Suckley,  U.  S.  \.,  that  he  has  always 
doubted  the  specific  identity  of  the  various  specimens  of  Pelidna  from  the  west  coast. 
Both  of  these  gentlemen  have  enjoyed  excellent  opportunities  for  observation  and  com- 
parison, and  their  opinions  should  carry  with  them  considerable  weight. 

1861.] 


190  PROCEEDINGS    OF   THE    ACADEMY   OP 

The  above  remarks  are  made  rather  with  the  view  of  calling  attention  to  the 
facts,  than  as  presenting  any  solution  of  the  problem.  The  whole  subject  is 
one  of  great  interest,  and  well  worthy  of  extended  and  careful  investigation. 

ACTODROMAS,  Kaup. 

Actodromas,  Kaup,  Sk.  Ent.  Eur.  Thierw.  1829,  55  ;  Typus  Tringa  minuta,  Leish 
Char.  Bill  about  equal  to  the  head  or  tarsus,  short,  straight,  very  slender, 
somewhat  compressed,  the  tip  puactulate,  scarcely  expanded,  acute.  Grooves 
on  both  mandibles  very  deep,  and  extending  nearly  to  the  tip.  Nostrils  situated 
very  near  the  base  of  the  bill.  Feathers  extending  on  the  lower  mandible  much 
beyond  those  on  the  upper,  and  half  as  far  as  those  between  the  rami.  Wings 
long,  pointed,  first  primary  usually  longest;  tertials  long,  slender,  flowing. 
Tail  rather  long,  deeply  doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers  much  project- 
ing ;  upper  tail  coverts  moderately  long.  Tibia  bare  for  more  than  half  the 
length  of  the  tarsus  ;  the  feathers  very  short,  making  the  exposed  portion  nearly 
as  great.  Tarsus  equal  to  the  middle  toe.  Toes  long,  slender,  very  narrowly 
margined,  entirely  free  at  base.  (In  typical  species  the  jugulum  with  an  ashy 
or  brownish  suffusion,  thickly  streaked ;  the  rump  and  upper  tail  coverts  with 
a  central  blackish  field.) 

The  genus  Actodromas,  of  Kaup  (1829)  includes  a  well  marked  arid  very 
natural  group  of  Sandpipers,  the  quite  numerous  species  of  which  are  very 
closely  related  borh  in  form  and  colors.  Its  type,  from  which  I  have  drawn  the 
characters  in  the  preceding  diagnosis,  is  the  T.  minuta,  Leisl.,  a  European 
species  not  occurring  in  North  America,  being  replaced  in  that  country  by  the 
Tringa  Wilsom  of  Nuttall,  a  very  closely  allied  species,  and  one  with  which  it 
has  been  confounded  by  some  authors.  The  essential  characters  of  the  genus 
lie  in  the  short, straight,  slender  bill,  which  equals  the  head  or  tarsus;  the  long 
slender  toes,  the  middle  equal  to  the  tarsus ;  the  much  denuded  tibia  with  its 
short  feathers,  and  the  long,  deeply  doubly  emarginate  tail.  The  peculiar  pro- 
portions of  bill,  tarsus  and  toe  are  shared  by  no  other  Sandpipers,  so  far  as  my 
knowledge  extends.  The  geuus  is  divisible  into  two  well-marked  sections  : 
Actodromas  proper,  with  the  type  T.  minuta,  having  its  characters  strictly  as 
above  ;  and  Heteropygia,*  with  the  Tringa  Bonapartei  as  type.  The  latter  differs 
in  the  stouter  bill,  more  expanded  at  tip;  in  the  much  less  extent  of  the  en- 
croachment of  the  feathers  on  the  lower  mandible  ;  in  the  longer  legs,  the  tarsus 
rather  exceeding  the  middle  toe  ;  in  the  entire  absence  of  the  brownish  or  ashy 
suffusion  on  the  jugulum,  and  in  the  white  upper  tail  covers.  In  this  section  I 
have  placed  the  Tringa  Cooperi  of  Baird,  which  is  most  closely  related  to  the 
A.  Bonapartei,  and  is  at  any  rate  an  Actodromas  rather  than  a  true  Tringa. 

The  species  of  the  genus  now  ascertained  to  inhabit  North  America  are  five 
in  number:  A.  maculata,  A.  minutilla,  and  the  new  A.  Bairdii,  coming  under 
Actodromas  proper ;  A.  Bonapartei  and  A.  Cooperi^  which  compose  the  section 
Heteropygia.  The  three  first  of  these  are  so  nearly  alike  in  colors,  that,  their 
form  being  absolutely  identical,  size  is  the  chief  specific  difference.  A.  macu- 
lata  is  much  the  largest,  being  about  nine  inches  in  length  ;  A.  minutilla  is  very 
small,  being  less  than  six  inches ;  while  A.  Bairdii  is  exact'y  intermediate 
between  the  two,  measuring  a  little  over  seven  inches. 

The  following  brief  schedule  will  serve  to  distinguish  the  five  species,  when 
in  adult  breeding  plumage  : — 

Actodromas,  Kaup. 

A.  Jugulum  with  a  brownish  or  ashy  suffusion,  thickly  streaked.     Rump  and 
upper  tail  coverts  with  a  central  black  field. 

*  The  name  is  used  with  reference  to  the  most  conspicuous,  though  probably  not  most 
important,  feature  in  which  it  differs  from  Actodiomas  proper.  The  combination  being 
rather  an  obvious  one,  the  name  may  have  been  already  employed;  in  ihat  event  I  would 
suggest  Delopygia  with  much  the  same  signification. 

[July, 


NATURAL   SCIENCES    OF   PHILADELPHIA. 


191 


maculata. 


Bairdii. 


1.  Much  the  largest;  length  about  9  inches,  wing  (average)  5-25. 

Crown  much  darker  than  the  hind  neck,  the  transition  abrupt. 
Chin  immaculate.  Edgings  of  feathers  on  upper  parts  light 
chestnut-red,  not  making  indentations  towards  the  shaft.  Suf- 
fusion on  jugulum  very  deep,  the  streaks  narrow,  distinct. 
Central  tail  feathers  long,  pointed,  much  projecting.  Bill  and 
legs  dusky  green, 

2.  Smaller;  length  7-25  inches,  wing  4'8.  Crown  not  conspicuously 

darker  than  hind  neck.  Edgings  of  feathers  on  upper  parts 
light  reddish  yellow,  scarcely  brighter  on  the  scapulars,  making 
indentations  towards  the  shaft.  Suffusion  on  jugulum  very 
light,  the  markings  rounded,  somewhat  obsolete.  Central  tail 
feathers  rounded,  less  projecting.  Bill  and  legs  black, 

3.  Much  the  smallest;  a  miniature  of  the  preceding;  length  5-75; 

wing  3-4.  Edges  of  feathers  chestnut-red,  usually  more  or 
less  indented,  tips  lighter.  Bill  black,  legs  dusky  green, 

Heteropygia,  Coues. 
B.  Jugulum  without  an  ashy  or  brownish  suffusion.     Upper  tail  coverts  white. 

4.  Length  7-5.      Jugulum   thickly  streaked  with   rather  narrow 

lines.     Upper  tail  coverts  immaculate,  except  the  outer  pair. 

Central  tail  feathers  nearly  black,  considerably  projecting,      Bonapartei. 

5.  Much  larger;  length  9-5.     Jugulum  with  sparse,  rather  broad 

oval  spots  or  streaks.  Upper  tail  coverts  with  sagittate  spots 
of  dusky.  Central  tail  feathers  scarcely  darker  than  the  late- 
ral, projecting  but  little,  Cooperi. 

Comparative  Measurements  of  Species. 


Name. 

Sex. 

Length. 

Extent. 

Wing. 

Bill 

above. 

Tarsus 

Middle 
Toe. 

Outer 
Toe. 

Coyerts 
to  end 
of  tail. 

Central 
Feathers 
project. 

A.  maculata. 

9-00* 

5-35 

1-12 

1-12 

1-12 

•90 

•80 

•52 

do. 

9 

8-50 

16-50 

5-00 

1-15 

1-10 

1-12 

•92 

•80 

•40 

do. 

9-10 

18-20 

5-55 

1-20 

1-14 

1-14 

•92 

•90 

•42 

A.  Bairaii. 

(^ 

7-15 

4-90 

•85 

•83 

•83 

'70 

•60 

•20 

do. 

^ 

7-25 

15-25 

4-85 

•86 

•88 

•88 

•72 

•50 

•15 

do. 

^ 

7-25 

15-25 

4-80 

•86 

•90 

•82 

•69 

•63 

•16 

A.  minutilla. 

Q 

3-35 

•74 

•69 

•78 

•61 

•45 

•18 

do. 

^ 

6-00 

11-30 

3-35 

•72 

•75 

•V9 

•64 

•40 

•25 

do 

C? 

6-00 

12-00 

3-56 

•74 

•75 

•85 

•66 

•58 

•20 

-4.  Bonapartei. 

c? 

7-40 

15-00 

4-70 

•94 

•98 

•95 

•80 

•80 

•29 

do. 

4-85 

•88 

•98 

•90 

•80 

•80 

•22 

do. 

j( 

7-40 

15-10 

4-80 

•95 

•92 

•91 

•75 

•75 

•22 

A.  Cooperi. 

cf 

9-50 

5-75 

1-23 

1-14 

1-08 

•95 

•85 

•15 

ACTODROMAS  (AcTODROMAs)  MiNCTiLLA  (Vieill.)  Coues. — Least  Sandpiper. 

Tringa  minutiUa,  Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet.  1819,  xxxiv.  452,  (haud  dubie.)  "Vieill," 

Gray,  Genera,  1849,  iii.  579. 
Tringa  pusitta,  Wilson,  Am.  Orn.  1813,  v.  32,  tab.  xxxvii.  fig.  4;  id.  Ord.  Ed. 

1829,   iii.   134;    id.  Brewer,  Ed.   1840,  347,  fig.   161.     (Nee  Linnaei;    nee 

Meyer;  nee  Bechst.)     Swainson,  F.  B.  A.  1831,  ii.  386.     Audubon,  On. 

Biog.  1838,  iv.  320,  tab.  180;  id.  Syn.  1839,  237;  id.  Birds  Amer.  v.  1842, 

*The  measurements  of  the  length  and  extent  are  from  the  fresh  bird,  and  on  the 
authority  of  the  collector. 

1861.] 


192  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ACADEMY   OP 

280,  tab.  337 ;  Giraud,  Birds  L.  I.  1844,  240.     Gray,  Genera,  1849,  iii.  579. 

Woodhouse,  Expl.  Zuni.  1853,  100. 
Pelidna  purilla,  Bonaparte,  Comp.  List,  1838,  50.     Gosse,  Birds  Jamaica,  1847, 

348.  . 

Tringa    Wilsoni,  Nuttall,  Man.  1834,  ii.  121.     Cooper    et    Suckley,  Nat.  Hist. 

Wash.  Terr.  1860,  240. 

Tringa  (Tringa)  pusilla,  Bonaparte,  Comp.  Speech.  1827,  237. 
Tringa  (Aciodromas)  Wihoni,  Cassin,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  721. 

Sp.  Char.— The  smallest  of  North  American  Tringece.  Bill  straight,  very 
slender,  about  equal  to  the  tarsus,  but  varying  somewhat,  the  tip  scarcely 
expanded,  and  the  point  very  acute.  Wings  long,  first  and  second  primaries 
about  equal,  third  but  little  shorter.  Tertials  very  long,  frequently  nearly 
equalling  the  primaries.  Tail  rather  long,  the  central  feathers  moderately  pro- 
jecting and  rather  rounded.  Middle  toe  frequently  slightly  longer  than  tarsus. 
Upper  parts  generally  with  each  feather  having  a  central  black  field,  and  being 
edged  with  chestnut  and  tipped  with  ashy  white,  the  margins  making  a  deep 
indentation  in  the  middle  of  the  feather.  Outer  row  of  tail  coverts  white,  with 
large,  sagittate,  dusky  spots.  Central  tail  feathers  black,  edged  with  light 
reddish,  the  others  very  light  ashy  with  whitish  borders.  Primaries  deep 
dusky,  almost  black,  the  shaft  of  the  first  white.  Secondaries  and  greater 
coverts  dusky,  lighter  on  the  inner  vanes,  and  tipped  with  white.  An  indistinct 
whitish  line  over  the  eye,  and  a  dusky  one  between  the  eye  and  bill.  Jugulum 
and  sides  to  some  distance  with  a  very  decided  brownish  suffusion,  and  thickly 
marked  with  rounded  spots  and  streaks  of  dusky.  Chin  and  under  parts  gene- 
rally white,  the  former  usually  with  minute  points  of  dusky.  Legs,  feet  and 
bill  greenish  dusky,  the  latter  nearly  black. 

Length  5-5  to  6,  extent  11-5  to  12,  wing  3-4.  Bill,  tarsus  and  middle  toe 
about  -75. 

Habitat. — Entire  temperate  North  America. 

The  diminutive  size  of  the  present  species  at  once  distinguishes  it  from  any 
other  Sandpiper  now  recognised  as  an  inhabitant  of  North  America;  but  in 
view  of  the  species  of  other  countries  with  which  it  is  very  closely  allied,  and 
especially  of  the  uncertainty  whether  there  be  not  two  or  more  distinct  species 
in  North  America,  a  more  minute  description  may  not  be  considered  as  unneces- 
sary. In  addition,  therefore,  to  the  preceding  diagnosis,  which  presents  the 
principal  characters  of  adult  individuals,  the  following  remarks  may  tend  to 
define  it  with  more  precision. 

In  apparently  adult  specimens,  the  general  style  of  coloration  much  more 
closely  resembles  that  of  Bairdii  than  of  maculata,  in  the  rounded  black  spots 
and  color  of  the  edgings,  as  well  as  in  the  scolloping  at  the  middle  of  each 
feather.  Young  birds,  however,  are  precisely  similar  to  the  maculata  in  the 
same  stage,  having  the  edges  of  the  feathers  bright  chestnut,  and  the  tips  pure 
white.  In  this  respect  the  species  departs  from  the  general  rule  with  regard  to 
young  birds,  the  plumage  at  that  age  being  actually  brighter  than  during  the 
breeding  season.  The  same  is  the  case  with  the  A.  maculata.  An  evidence  of 
immaturity,  however,  may  always  be  found  in  the  color  of  the  jugulum.  where 
the  wash  is  simply  dull  ashy,  and  the  streaks  narrow  and  illy  defined.  The 
chin,  too,  is  immaculate,  while  with  the  adults  it  is  usually  minutely  dotted 
with  dusky.  The  young  have  the  lesser  wing  coverts  broadly  margined  with 
light  reddish,  while  the  adults  have  them  merely  a  lighter  shade  of  the  color 
of  the  rest  of  the  feather.  The  color  of  the  jugulum  is  much  that  of  A.  Bairdii, 
being  of  the  same  decided  brownish  tint ;  and  the  similarity  is  heightened  by 
the  rounded  and  somewhat  obsolete  character  of  the  spots.  The  color  of  the 
breast  extends  along  the  sides  about  half  way  to  the  tail,  but  some  feathers  are 
marked  with  dusky  quite  to  the  vent.  The  under  tail  coverts  are  usually  im- 
maculate, but  sometimes  have  shaft  lines  of  dusky.  The  primaries  are  deep 
dusky,  still  darker  at  tip,  the  shaft  of  the  first  being  white  for  its  entire  length, 

[July, 


NATURAL   SCIENCES   OP   PHILADELPHIA.  193 

the  other  having  their  bases  and  tips  brownish.  The  secondaries  and  greater 
coverts  are  nearly  as  dark  as  the  primaries,  both  conspicuously  tipped  and 
their  inner  vanes  edged  with  white.  The  axillary  feathers  are  white ;  and,  in 
the  closed  wing,  a  portion  of  the  under  coverts  form  a  large  triangular  patch 
of  white  near  the  shoulder. 

A  specimen  from  the  west  coast  presents  a  very  remarkable  pattern  of  color- 
ation. It  has  not  the  least  trace  of  any  reddish  or  chestnut,  being  everywhere 
of  a  uniform  dark  ash,  each  feather  with  a  central  spot  or  shaft  line  of  dusky. 
The  rump  is  scarcely  darker  than  the  back.  The  breast  is  merely  a  lighter 
shade  of  the  color  of  the  back,  and  the  streaks  are  so  indistinct  as  to  be 
scarcely  perceptible.  This  is  very  different  from  the  plumage  of  the  young 
given  above  ;  and  it  is  not  impossible  that  the  bird  is  of  a  species  distinct  from 
the  one  now  under  consideration.  The  general  pattern,  however,  is  very  simi- 
lar to  that  presented  by  the  young  Bairdii;  and  in  the  absence  of  any  differ- 
ences of  size  or  proportions,  and  with  but  a  single  specimen  before  me,  I  am 
unwilling  to  risk  adding  another  name  to  the  already  overburdened  synonymy 
of  the  smaller  Sandpipers.  In  another  specimen,  also  from  the  west  coast,  the 
prevailing  color  of  the  upper  parts  is  almost  black,  the  feathers,  except  on  the 
scapulars,  being  scarcely  edged  with  reddish ;  and  the  streaks  on  the  breast 
are  very  numerous  and  dark,  upon  a  nearly  white  ground.  This  state  of 
plumage  is  exactly  parallel  with  that  sometimes  exhibited  by  undoubted 
specimens  of  A.  maculata. 

The  relationship  of  this  species  to  the  European  A.  minuta  are  close ;  and, 
with  but  a  single  very  defective  and  immature  skin  of  the  latter  before  me,  I 
cannot  well  state  the  points  of  difference ;  but  all  authors  are  agreed  upon  the 
specific  distinction  of  the  two.  As  far  as  I  can  judge,  A.  minuta  is  considerably 
the  largest,  (wing  3-85  instead  of  about  3-4,)  and  the  proportions  of  the  pri- 
maries are  quite  different  from  those  of  A.  minutilla.  A.  minuta  has  been  given 
as  an  inhabitant  of  North  America  by  both  Swainson  and  Nuttall,  but  probably 
upon  insufficient  or  erroneous  data. 

With  regard  to  this  little  Sandpiper,  there  has  been  considerable  confusion 
among  authors,  arising  partly  from  the  great  similarity  it  bears  to,  some  other 
species,  such  as  the  Tringa  minuta  and  Temminckii,  and  partly  from  a  misinterpre- 
tation of  the  T.  pusilla*  of  Linnaeus.  This  name  was  applied  by  Wilson,  in  1818, 
to  the  species  now  under  consideration,  and  is  adopted  by  Swainson,  Audubon 
and  some  other  writers.  The  T. pusilla  of  Nuttall  ("stint  or  little  sandpiper") 
is  T .  Temminckiij  Leisl.,  and  is  erroneously  given  as  an  inhabitant  of  North 
America.  What  "Le  tringa  beco,  T.  pusilla.,  Lath.,"  of  Vieillot  refers  to  is  a 
little  doubtful.  The  author  quotes  plate  37,  fig.  4  of  Wilson's  Ornithology, 
which  is  T.  pusilla,  Wils.  (T.  Wilsoni,  Nutt. ;)  and  also  cites  the  "  petite  Alouette- 
de-mer  de  Saint-Domingue"  of  Brisson,  which  is  T.  semipalmata,  Wils.  (Ertu- 
netes  pusillus,  Cass.)  The  description,  however,  especially  with  reference  to 
the  stout  bill,  traces  of  reddish  on  the  under  parts,  &c.,  seems  rather  to  point 
to  the  latter,  which  it  may  be  best  to  consider  it,  even  though  no  mention  is 

*  For  convenience  of  reference,  the  four  species  to  which  the  name  pusilla  was  origi- 
nally applied,  with  their  more  prominent  synonyms,  are  here  inserted. 

Tringa  pusilla,  Linnaeus  =  Ereunetes  petrificatus,  Illiger  =  Tringa  semipalmata, 
Wilson  =  Htteropoda  semip.,  Nuttall,  and  Hemipalama  semip.,  Bonapar'e  —  JKreunetes 
pusittus,  Cassin ;  (Heteropoda  mauri,  Bonaparte,  and  Hemipalama  minor,  Gundlach,  are 
synonymous  ?) 

Tringa  pusilla,  Meyer  =  Tringa  minuta,  Leisler  =  Actodromas  minuta,  Kaup. 

Tringa  pusilla,  Bechstein  =  Tringa  Temminckii,  Leisler  =  Actodromas  Temminckii, 
Bonaparte. 

Tringa  pusilla,  Wilson  =  Tringa  minutilla,  Vieillot  =  Tringa  Wilsonii  Nuttall  = 
Actodromas  Wilsoni,  Cassin  =  Actodromas  minutilla  of  the  present  article. 

It  will  thus  be  seen  that  Tringa  pusilla  of  Linnaeus,  Meyer,  Bechstein  and  Wilson 
refers  to  four  distinct  species. 

1861.]  14 


194  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE   ACADEMY   OF 

made  of  the  webbed  feet.  The  remarks  made  in  this  article,  under  the  head  cf 
Ereunetes  pusillus,  will,  it  is  hoped,  show  that  the  name  pusilla  was  originally 
used  in  a  very  different  connection,  and  hence  cannot  be  employed  for  the  pre- 
sent species.  Bonaparte,  as  early  as  1825,  seems  to  have  been  aware  that  the 
T.  pusilla  of  Linnaeus  was  not  the  bird  given  under  that  name  by  Wilson ;  for 
in  bis  Observations  on  the  Nomenclature  of  Wilson's  Ornithology,  on  the  sub- 
ject of  T.  semipalmata,  Wils.,  he  gives  as  a  reason  for  not  adopting  pusilla  for 
that  latter  species,  that  "  several  species  have  been  confounded  together  under 
the  name  of  T.  pusilla;  and  although  the  present  (T.  semipalmata,  Wils.)  is  the  real 
species,  it  would  be  adding  to  the  existing  confusion  to  change  the  most  appro- 
priate name  of  semipalmata,  given  by  the  author  who  first  separated  the  species, 
in  order  to  apply  a  name  generally  given  to  another,  to  which  in  that  case  we 
ought  to  give  a  new  name."  In  1834,  Nuttall  applied  the  name  Wilsoni  to  a 
species  whose  manners  and  habits  he  described  so  accurately  that  there  can  be 
no  doubt  of  its  referring  to  the  bird  now  under  consideration,  though  he,  too, 
fell  into  the  error  of  quoting  T.  cinclus  dominicensis  minor,  Briss.  This  name 
Wilsoni  being  supposed  to  be  the  only  one  hitherto  applied  to  the  species, 
(except  of  course  pusilla,  untenable  for  the  reason  already  given,)  is  the  one  in 
general  use  among  more  modern  ornithologists.  In  view  of  the  existing  con- 
fusion, it  is  with  great  reluctance  that  I  adopt  still  another  name  for  this 
species;  but  the  Tringa  minutilla  of  Vieillot  punts  so  unmistakeably  to  the 
present  bird,  that  a  strict  adherence  to  the  laws  of  ornithological  nomenclature 
renders  this  necessary.  This  author  (page  466  of  the  Nouv.  Diet.)  says  :  "  Le 
nom  que  j'ai  conserve  a  cet  oiseau  eat  celui  sous  lequel  il  est  connu  dans  nos 
colonies  d'Amerique.  et  qui  lui  a  ete  impose  d'apres  sa  petite  taille  . .  .  .  il  a  des 
rapports  avec  le  tringa  minuta  de  Leisler  .  .  .  .  je  1'ai  souvent  vu  a  Halifax,  et 
dans  la  Nouvelle-Ecosse  ....  comme  les  tringas  becos,"  (T.  semipalmata, 
Wils.?)  "se  comport  de  meme,  il  en  est  resulie  qu'on  les  a  confondus  en- 
semble." There  is  no  North  American  Sandpiper  but  the  present  remarkable 
for  its  diminutive  size,  and  having  relationships  with  the  T.  minuta,  Leisl.,  that 
is  found  in  Nova  Scotia,  except  the  T.  semipalmata,  Wils.,  with  which,  as  the 
author  remarks,*  it  is  sometimes  confounded,  from  a  general  similarity  in 
habits  and  appearance.  The  description  given  applies  well;  and  in  some  par- 
ticulars, such  as  the  length  (quatre  pouces  dix  lignes)  and  the  proportions  of 
the  bill,  ("noir,  tres-grele,  et  long  de  neuf  legnes;  les  tarses  de  lamemelon- 
geur,")  can  refer  to  no  other  North  American  Sandpiper. 

From  these  considerations  therefore  I  adopt  the  name  minutilla,  at  least  until 
some  weightier  reasons  be  adduced  to  disprove  the  position  assumed. 

ACTODROMAS  (AcTODROMAs)  BAiRDii  Coues. — Baird's  Sandpiper. 
Tringa  (Aclodromas)  Bonapartei,  Cassin,  Gen.  Rep.  722.     In  part. 

Sp.  Char. — Form  and  proportions  typical  of  the  genus.  Bill  small,  slender, 
rather  shorter  than  the  head,  equal  to  the  tarsus,  the  tip  scarcely  expanded,  its 
point  very  acute.  Grooves  in  both  mandibles  very  long  and  deep,  that  of  the 
lower  very  narrow.  Feathers  extending  on  the  side  of  lower  mandible  much 
farther  than  those  on  the  upper,  about  half  as  far  as  those  between  the  rami. 
Wings  long;  first  and  second  primaries  about  equal,  but  varying,  third 
much  shorter;  tertials  long,  slender,  flowing.  Tail  rather  long,  but  slightly 
doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers  rounded,  projecting  but  little.  Toes 
long,  slender,  slightly  margined,  the  middle  with  its  claw  about  equal  to  tarsus. 
Adult  in  breeding  plumage.  Entire  upper  parts  a  very  dark  brownish  black, 
deeper  on  the  rump  and  lighter  on  the  neck  behind,  each  feather  bordered  and 
tipped  with  light  reddish  yellow;  on  the  scapulars  the  tips  broader  and  nearly 
pure  white,  and  the  margins  brighter,  making  several  deep  indentations  towards 

*  If,  as  is  probably  the  case,  "  le  beco  "  be  the  T.  semipalmata,  Wils. 


NATURAL  SCIENCES  OP  PHILADELPHIA.  195 

the  shaft.  Upper  tail  coverts  long,  extending  to  within  half  an  inch  of  the  tips 
of  the  central  tail  feathers,  black,  except  the  outer  series,  which  are  white  with 
dusky  markings.  Central  tail  feathers  brownish  black,  the  rest  successively 
lighter,  and  all  with  a  narrow  border  of  white.  Jugulum  with  a  very  decided 
light  brownish  suffusion,  (much  as  in  A.maculata,)  and,  together  with  the  sides 
under  the  wings  to  some  distance,  with  rounded  obsolete  spots  and  streaks  of 
dusky.  Throat  and  under  parts  generally  white,  immaculate.  Bill,  legs  and 
feet  black.  Young  in  August.  Dimensions  and  proportions  as  in  the  adult. 
Upper  parts  a  nearly  uniform  light  ashy  brown,  deeper  on  the  rump,  each 
feather  with  a  central  dark  field  and  with  a  light  edge.  Traces  of  the  brownish 
black  of  the  adult  on  the  scapuUrs.  Breast  and  jugulum  with  the  suffusion 
very  light  reddish  brown,  the  streaks  sparse  and  very  indistinct. 

Length  7-25,  extent  15-25,  wing  4-9.  Bill  above,  tarsus  and  middle  toe  about 
•85. 

Habitat. — North  America,  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  Not  on  the  Atlantic 
coast.  (?) 

The  preceding  diagnosis  expresses  the  most  essential  characters  of  a  Sand- 
piper, hitherto  confounded  with  the  A.  Bonapartei,  but  nevertheless  perfectly 
distinct  from  that  or  any  other  species  recognized  as  an  inhabitant  of  North 
America.  Though  a  true  Actodromas,  and  very  closely  related  to  the  A.  minu- 
tilla  and  maculata,  a  similarity  in  size,  in  changes  of  plumage,  and,  to  some 
extent,  in  general  appearance,  has  caused  it  to  be  referred  to  A.  Honapartei, 
which,  however,  belongs  to  a  group  subgenerically  distinct.  But  the  two  difler 
very  materially  both  in  tints  and  in  the  pattern  of  coloration  of  the  upper  par's, 
and  in  the  character  of  the  upper  tail  coverts  and  the  jugulum.  The  following 
brief  schedule  will  express  the  chief  distinctive  features  of  each,  and  render 
further  comparison  unnecessary. 

A.  Bairdii. — Length  about  7-25  inches.  Bill  slender,  entirely  black.  Feathers 
extending  on  the  lower  mandible  much  beyond  those  on  the  upper.  Edging  of 
scapulars  light  buff  color,  indented.  Breast  and  jugulum  with  a  decided 
brownish  suffusion,  the  markings  rounded,  sparse,  ratner  obsolete.  Upper  tail 
coverts  much  lengthened,  black;  central  tail  feathers  projecting  but  little,  the 
emargiuation  of  the  tail  slight. 

A.  Bonapartei. — Length  about  7-50  inches.  Bill  stout,  flesh  colored  at  base 
below.  Feathers  extending  on  the  lower  mandible  but  little  if  any  beyond 
those  on  the  upper.  Edging  of  scapulars  bright  chestnut,  scarcely  indented. 
Jugulum  and  breast  with  a  scarcely  appreciable  ashy  wash,  the  streaks  narrow, 
numerous,  well  defined.  Upper  tail  coverts  moderate,  white ;  the  central  tail 
feathers  considerably  projecting,  and  tail  quite  deeply  emarginate. 

The  species  is  a  true  Actodromas,  and  belongs  subgenerically  to  the  same 
group  as  A.  minutilla  and  maculata,  with  both  of  which  it  is  very  closely  related, 
and  requires  comparison.  In  size  it  is  exactly  intermediate  between  the  two, 
exceeding  the  minutilla  by  about  as  much  as  it  is  itself  surpassed  by  the  macu- 
lata.  The  slender  black  bill  is  very  similar  to  that  of  minutilla,  and  the  general 
pattern  of  coloration  almost  identical.  The  colors,  however,  are  everywhere 
much  lighter;  the  edgings  of  the  feathers  of  the  upper  parts  being  of 'a  light 
reddish  yellow  or  buff,  instead  of  the  bright  chestnut  red  of  minutilla ;  while 
the  streaks  upon  the  breast  are  fewer,  less  distinct  and  more  rounded.  It  is 
considerably  smaller  than  A.  maculate;  there  is  nothing  of  the  abrupt  transition 
from  the  dark  crown  to  the  ranch  lighter  hind  neck,  so  conspicuous  in  the 
latter;  the  tertials  want  the  bright  reddish  edgings,  and  the  pattern  of  color- 
ation of  the  upper  parts  are  quite  different.  While  the  suffusion  of  the  breast 
and  jugulum  is  much  the  same,  the  markings  are  more  rounded,  sparse  and 
indistinct.  There  is  also  a  great  difference  in  the  bill,  as  regards  size,  shape 
and  color.  The  species  differs  from  both  minutilla  and  maculala  in  one  important 
respect, — the  character  of  the  changes  of  plumage  it  undergoes.  The  young 
of  both  the  former  are  usually  quite  as  bright,  if  not  brighter,  than  the  adults ; 

1861.] 


196  PROCEEDINGS   OF   THE   ACADEMY   OP 

and  the  markings  are  all  definite  and  distinct,  while  immature  birds  of  tha 
present  species  are  of  a  nearly  uniform  ashy  above,  the  suffusion  of  the  breast 
very  light,  and  the  streaks  so  indistinct  as  to  be  scarcely  appreciable.  In  this 
respect  it  resembles  A.  Bonapartei,  with  the  different  stages  of  which  there  is  a 
perfect  parallelism.  In  some  stages  of  plumage  it  approaches  the  A.  Cooperi, 
the  resemblance  being  further  enhanced  by  the  slight  emargination  of  the  tail. 
The  greatly  superior  size  of  the  latter,  however,  independently  of  its  subgeneric 
characters,  at  once  distinguishes  it.  Some  specimens  show  a  tendency  towards 
the  general  dusky  state  of  plumage  also  exhibited  by  both  minutilla  and  macu- 
lata,  when  the  upper  parts  are  very  dark  and  nearly  uniform,  being  scarcely 
relieved  by  lighter  margins  of  the  feathers. 

The  following  detailed  description  which  will  serve  to  definitely  characterize 
this  species  in  the  plumage  of  the  adult  during  the  breeding  season,  and  of  the 
young  bird  of  the  first  fall,  is  taken  from  a  very  perfect  male  shot  May  19th,  at 
Fort  Resolution,  and  from  a  young  male  obtained  in  Nebraska  during 'the  latter 
part  of  July. 

The  bill  is  of  moderate  length,  and  very  slender,  expanded  but  slightly  at  tip, 
and  the  point  very-acute  ;  the  grooves  are  long,  extending  quite  to  the  expansion 
of  the  tip,  that  of  the  lower  mandible  being  narrow  but  distinct.  The  bill  is 
entirely  black.  The  feathers  encroach  on  the  lower  mandible  much  beyond 
those  on  the  upper,  about  half  as  far  as  those  between  the  rami.  Their  upper 
outline  is  about  parallel  with  the  culmen.  There  is  much  white  about  the 
head  ;  the  extreme  forehead  and  the  lower  eyelid  are  white,  while  a  broad  ill- 
defined  band  of  the  same  passes  over  the  eye.  A  narrow  and  well  defined  dusky 
stripe  passes  from  the  eye  to  the  nostril.  The  crown  is  streaked  with  dusky 
brown  and  dull  ochreous,  and  is  darker  along  a  broad  medium  stripe  than  at 
the  sides.  The  sides  and  back  of  the  neck  are  much  like  the  crown,  but  rather 
lighter,  the  transition  being  gradual.  The  upper  parts  generally  are  of  a  dark 
brownish  black,  every  feather  being  edged  with  light  reddish  yellow  ;  on  the 
scapulars  each  feather  is  broadly  bordered  with  bright  buff,  still  more  widely 
at  the  end  with  a  dull  shade  of  the  same,  the  extreme  tip  being  white.  On 
most  of  the  feathers  the  edging  makes  a  deep,  more  or  less  irregular  indenta- 
tion, leaving  the  black  only  as  a  line  along  each  side  of  the  shaft.  The  long 
tertials,  the  secondaries,  and  greater  \ving  coverts  are  dusky,  fading  into  dull 
white  on  the  edges.  The  lesser  coverts  are  very  dark,  with  scarcely 
lighter  tips.  The  primaries  are  deep  dusky,  almost  black,  the  shaft  of  the  first 
white,  of  the  others  mostly  brownish.  The  inner  primaries  are  very  narrowly 
edged  on  the  outer  vane  with  white.  The  tail  coverts  are  black,  the  outer 
series  with  sagittate  spots  of  white.  The  central  tail  feathers  which  are 
rounded  and  project  but  little  beyond  the  rest,  are  brownish  black,  narrowly 
edged  with  white  ;  the  lateral  light  ashy,  fading  into  white  at  the  edges.  The 
chin  and  throat  are  white,  and  immaculate  or  nearly  so.  The  jugulum,  breast, 
and  sides  to  some  distance  have  a  very  decided  light  brownish,  or  ochreous  suf- 
fusion, and  the  makings  are  rather  sparse,  rounded,  and  indistinct,  in  the  mid- 
dle of  the  breast  nearly  obsolete.  They  are  largest  and  most  conspicuous  just 
before  the  bend  of  the  wing,  where  they  gradually  pass  into  the  stripes  of  the 
sides  of  the  neck.  The  rest  of  the  under  parts  including  the  axillars  and  under 
wing  coverts  are  white,  immaculate.  The  tibial  feathers  are  ashy ;  the  legs 
and  feet  black. 

The  young  has  the  form  and  proportions  much  as  in  the  adult.  The  white 
about  the  head  is  much  restricted,  and  the  line  over  the  eye  so  illy  defined  as 
to  be  scarcely  appreciable  as  such.  The  upper  parts  generally  are  of  a  dull 
nearly  uniform  brownish  ash,  each  feather  with  a  shaft  line  of  dusky,  and 
with  a  lighter  tip.  There  are  traces  of  the  brownish  black  of  the  adult  at  in- 
tervals, but  more  particularly  on  the  scapulars,  where  the  edgings  are  yellowish 
white.  The  rump  and  upper  tail  coverts  are  nearly  as  dark  as  on  the  adult. 
The  suffusion  of  the  jugulum  and  breast  is  a  very  light  shade  of  reddish  brown  ; 

[July, 


NATURAL   SCIENCES    OF    PHILADELPHIA.  197 

and  the  streaks  are  sparse,  and  so  indistinct  as  to  be  in  some  places  scarcely 
appreciable.  The  wash  extends  for  some  distance  along  the  sides  under  the 
wings. 

An  intermediate,  and  perhaps  more  usual  state  of  plumage  during  the  winter 
differs  in  some  respects  from  either  of  the  preceding.  The  centres  of  the 
feathers  of  the  upper  parts  are  nearly  as  dark  as  in  the  adult,  but  they  are 
every  where  rather  broadly  tipped  with  pure  white.  In  other  respects  the 
plumage  generally  is  much  like  that  of  the  adult,  except  that,  as  might  be  ex- 
pected, the  wash  on  the  jugulum  is  very  light  and  much  restricted,  and  the 
streaks  very  indistinct. 

Upon  inspection  of  Andubon's  figure  of  the  male  of  his  Tringa  Schinzii,  I  was 
inclined  to  think  that  it  was  taken  from  a  specimen  of  the  present  species.  It 
represents  a  male  in  the  act  of  flying,  and  shows  plainly  the  upper  tail  coverts, 
which  are  entirely  dark  colored,  as  are  also  the  upper  parts  generally.  In  the 
collection,  however,  I  find  a  specimen  of  the  true  Bonapartei,  labelled  "  St. 
Augustine,  Fla.,"  received  from  Mr.  Audubon,  which  is  in  all  probability  the 
original  of  the  figure.  It  is  in  the  peculiar  dusky  state  already  mentioned,  and 
agrees  very  nearly  with  the  plate.  His  figure  of  the  female  is  undoubtedly 
that  of  a  true  Bonapartei.  The  fact  of  his  remarking  that  "  In  some  individuals 
about  six  of  the  middle  tail  coverts  are  black,  the  lateral  barred  with  white 
and  dusky,"  show  that  he  was  acquainted  with  both  species,  but  considered 
the  differences  as  dependant  upon  sex  or  age.  The  diagnosis  given  by  Mr. 
Cassin,  in  the  General  Report,  of  Tringa  Bonapartei,  points  unmistakeably  to  that 
bird  ;  but  on  the  examination  of  the  four  specimens  there  enumerated,  I  find 
three  of  them  to  be  of  the  present  species.  The  differences  were  most  unac- 
countably overlooked  by  that  accurate  ornithologist,  though  on  a  very  cur- 
sory comparison  of  the  types  of  the  descriptions  in  the  present  article,  with 
specimens  of  A.  Bonapartei,  he  pronounced  them  to  be  totally  distinct. 

The  first  specimen  of  the  present  species  procured  were  taken  by  Dr.  Hayden, 
during  the  exploration  of  Nebraska,  by  Lieut.  Warren.  There  are  also  speci- 
mens in  the  collection  from  Fort  Kearney,  by  Dr.  Cooper,  from  the  Zuni  river,  by 
Dr.  Woodhouse,  and  from  the  vicinity  of  Great  Slave  Lake,  by  Mr.  Kennicott 
and  Mr.  Ross.  These  widely  separated  localities  would  seem  to  indicate  a 
habitat  co-extensive  with  that  of  A.  Bonapartei,  and  probably  embracing  the 
continent  of  North  America,  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.  I  have  never  seen 
it,  however,  from  the  Atlantic  coast. 

In  presenting  to  the  scientific  world  this  my  first  new  species,  I  should  do 
violence  to  my  feelings,  did  I  give  it  any  other  name  than  the  one  chosen.  To 
SPEXCER  F.  BAIRD,  I  dedicate  it,  as  a  slight  testimonial  of  respect  for  scientific 
acquirements  of  the  highest  order,  and  in  grateful  remembrance  of  the  unvary- 
ing kindness  which  has  rendered  my  almost  daily  intercourse  a  source  of  so 
great  pleasure,  and  of  the  friendly  encouragement  to  which  I  shall  ever  feel  in- 
debted for  whatever  progress  I  may  hereafter  make  in  ornithology. 

ACTODROMAS  (AcioDROMAs)  MACULATA  (Vie  ill.)  Cass. — Pectoral  Sandpiper. 

Tringa  maculata,  Vieillot,  Nouv.  Diet.  1819,  xxxiv.  465. 

Pelidna  maculata,  Parzudaki.  Cat.  Ois.  Eur.  1856,  15.     (T.  Bonapartei,  Schlegel 

per  errorem  citat.) 

Tringa  campestris,  Lichtenstein,  Verz.  1823,  74  ;  (nee  Vieill.,  1819.) 
Pelidna  pectoralis,  Say,  Long's  Exped.    1823,  i.    171.     Bonaparte,  Comp.   List. 

1838.  50.     Cassin,  U.  S.  Ast.  Exp.  1855,  ii.  195. 
Tringa  pectoralis,  Bonaparte,  Am.  Orn.  1833,  iv.  43  ;  tab.  xxiii. ;  id.    Cat.  Birds 

U.    S. ;   id.   Syn.    sp.  250;   (fide   Bon.)      Nuttall,    Manual,    1834,   ii.    111. 

Jenyns.  Manual,  1835,  210.     Audubon,  Orn.   Biog.   1835,  Hi.  601:  v.  582  ; 

tab!    294;   id.  Syn.   1839,  232;   id.  Birds  Amer.  v.    1842,259;   tab.  329. 

Macgillivray,  Man.  Brit.  Birds,  1842,  ii.  67.    Giraud,  Birds  L.  I.,  1844,  233. 

Dekay,  N.  Y.  Faun.   1844,  242,  tab.  85,  fig.  193.     Schlegel,  Rev.  Grit.  Ois. 

1861.] 


198  PROCEEDINGS    OF   THE    ACADEMY    OP 

Ear.  1844,  89.     Gray,  Genera,  1849,  iii.  579.  Lambeye,  Aves  Cubae,  1850, 
98.     Woodhouse,  Sitgreave's  Expl.  1853,  100.    Meyer,  Brit.  Birds,  1857,  v. 
89.     Cooper  et  Suckley,  Nat.  Hist.  Wash.  Terr.  1860,  230. 
Tringa  Dominicensis,  Degland,  Orn.  Eur.  1849,  ii.  232. 
Tringa  (Tringa)  pectoralis,  Bonaparte,  Spec.  Comp.  1827,  62. 
Pelidna  (Pelidna)  pectoralis,  Bonaparte,  Cat.  Met.  1842,  60. 
Tringa  (Actodromas)  maculata,  Cassin,  Gen.   Rep.  Birds,   1858. 

Sjy.  Ch. — Bill  a  liitle  longer  than  the  head,  about  equal  to  the  tarsus  or  middle 
toe,  moderately  stout,  straight  or  very  lightly  decurved,  the  tip  more  expanded  and 
punctulate  than  in  the  type  of  the  genus.  Grooves  in  both  mandibles  long  and 
deep.  Wings  long,  pointed,  first  primary  decidedly  longest;  tertials  very  long,  nar- 
row, and  flowing.  Tarsus  equal  to  middle  toe,  both  about  equal  to  the  bill.  Tail 
rather  long,  deeply  doubly  emarginate,  the  central  feathers  pointed  and  greatly 
projecting.  Adult  in  Spring.  An  ill-defined  white  line  over  the  eye,  and  a 
more  distinct  one  of  dusky  between  eye  and  bill.  Crown  streaked  with  brown- 
ish black  and  light  chestnut,  conspicuously  different  from  the  neck  behind, 
which  is  streaked  with  dusky  and  light  ochreous.  Upper  parts  generally,  a  very 
dark  brownish  black,  every  feather  edged  with  ashy  or  dark  chestnut  red, 
brightest  on  the  scapulars,  the  tips  usually  lighter,  and  the  margins  never  mak- 
ing deep  indentations  toward  the  shaft.  Rump  and  upper  tail  coverts  black, 
the  outer  series  of  the  latter  white,  with  sagittate  spots  of  dusky.  Primaries 
deep  dusky,  almost  black,  the  shaft  of  the  first  white,  of  the  others  brown. 
Secondaries  and  greater  coverts  dusky,  edged  and  tipped  with  white.  Lesser 
coverts  dusky,  fading  into  light  greyish  ash  on  the  edges.  Central  tail  feathers 
brownish  black,  lighter  on  the  edges,  the  lateral  light  ashy  margined  with 
white.  Jugulum  and  breast  with  a  deep  wash  of  ashy  brown,  and  with  very 
numerous  well  defined  streaks  of  dusky  ;  the  suffusion  extending  on  the  sides 
under  the  wings  to  some  distance,  where  the  dusky  streaks  are  mostly  shaft 
lines.  Chin,  and  under  parts  generally,  white,  immaculate.  Bill  and  feet  dusky 
greenish.  Young  in  September.  Edges  of  the  feathers  of  the  upper  parts  generally, 
and  of  the  tertials  and  central  tail  feathers,  light  bright  chestnut,  and  the  tips 
pure  white.  Lesser  wing  coverts  broadly  edged  and  tipped  with  light  ferru- 
ginous. Suffusion  on  the  breast  and  jugulum  with  a  yellowish  ochreous  tinge 
not  seen  in  the  adult,  and  the  streaks  less  distinct.  Other  parts  as  in  the 
adult. 

Length  9  to  9-5  inches,  extent  about  18,  wing  (average)  5'5.  Bill,  tarsus, 
and  middle  toe  about  1-10. 

Habitat. — Entire  temperate  North  America.     Europe. 

This  is  the  largest  of  the  species  of  this  group  inhabiting  North  America, 
with  the  exception  of  the  A.  Cooperi ;  and  though  it  is  subject  to  great  variations 
both  in  size  and  color,  is  not  easily  confounded  with  any  other.  The  size,  the 
character,  and  color  of  the  margins  of  the  feathers  of  the  upper  parts,  the  crown 
conspicuously  different  from  the  hind  neck,  and  the  deep  pectoral  wash,  readily 
distinguish  it.  Its  relationships  are  closest  with  the  A.  Bairdii,  both  having 
the  black  rump  and  upper  tail  coverts,  and  suffusion  on  the  jugulum.  The 
considerably  superior  size  of  the  present  species,  however,  at  once  distinguishes 
it,  independently  of  the  different  color  and  pattern  of  the  markings  on  the  upper 
parts.  In  maculata  the  edgings  of  the  feathers  are  either  dull  ashy  or  bright 
chestnut,  and  are  never  of  the  light  reddish  yellow  of  Bairdii.  There  is  nothing 
of  the  scolloping  of  the  edgings  on  the  scapulars,  which  in  Bairdii  give  the 
appearance  of  a  rounded  black  spot  on  the  end  of  each  feather.  The  emargina- 
tion  of  the  tail  is  more  than  twice  as  great.  The  pectoral  wash  is  much  deeper, 
and  the  streaks  more  numerous  and  distinct.  The  much  smaller  size,  the  white 
upper  tail  coverts,  and  absence  of  a  decided  pectoral  wash  of  A.  Bonapartei  at 
once  separate  that  species  without  further  comparison.  The  similarity  in  every 
respect  except  with  regard  to  size  presented  by  the  A.  minutilla  is  very  great, 
especially  in  immature  individuals  of  the  latter  ;  but  its  diminutive  size  renders 

[July, 


NATURAL   SCIENCES    OF  PHILADELPHIA.  199 

comparison  unnecessary.  The  differences  between  the  present  species  and  the 
A.  Cooperi  will  be  pointed  out  under  the  head  of  the  latter. 

In  addition  to  the  characters  given  on  the  diagnosis,  the  following  remarks 
may  serve  to  illustrate  the  peculiarities  of  the  present  species,  with  its  varia- 
tions. While  the  difference  in  size  between  the  largest  and  smallest  specimens 
before  me  is  very  considerable,  amounting  to  over  half  an  inch  in  the  wing,  and 
more  than  an  inch  in  entire  length,  the  bill  and  feet  vary  but  little  in  length 
and  proportion.  The  difference  in  the  length  of  the  bill  is  but  about  one-tenth 
of  an  inch,  and  of  the  tarsus  and  toes  it  is  less.  The  three  are  about  equal,  and 
from  1-10  to  1-20  of  an  inch  in  length.  The  proportions  of  the  quills  seem  con- 
stant, the  first  being  decidedly  longest.  The  tertials  vary  quite  remarkably  in 
length,  in  some  specimens  nearly  equalling  the  longest  primary,  and  in  others 
being  over  an  inch  and  a  half  shorter ;  they  usually,  however,  reach  to  within 
less  than  an  inch  of  the  tips  of  the  wings.  The  feathers,  which  encroach  on  the 
side  of  the  lower  mandible  but  little  beyond  those  on  the  upper,  present  an  acute 
angle,  their  upper  outline  being  parallel  with  the  commissure,  and  the  lower 
sloping  rapidly  backward.  The  crown  is  much  darker  than  the  hind  neck,  the 
transition  being  marked  and  abrupt.  The  upper  parts  -vary  greatly  in  the 
color  of  the  margins  of  the  feathers,  it  being  of  every  intermediate  shade  from 
a  very  dull  ashy  with  scarcely  a  tinge  ef  reddish  to  very  bright  chestnut.  In 
the  latter  case,  the  tips  of  the  feathers  are  nearly  pure  white ;  but  this  pattern 
of  coloration  is  mostly  confined  to  the  young  bird,  which,  as  is  also  the  case 
with  A.  minutilla,  is  of  actually  brighter  colors  than  when  adult.  An  evidence 
of  immaturity  is  always  to  be  seen  in  the  light  ferruginous  edgings  of  the 
lesser  wing  coverts,  which  in  the  adults  are  merely  ligbt  ashy.  The  same  fea- 
ture characterizes  the  young  minutilla,  and  is  also  found  in  the  European  A. 
minuta.  While  the  pectoral  wash  is  always  deep  and  decided,  its  color  varies 
considerably.  In  the  adults  it  is  usually  a  very  dark  ash,  while  in  the  young 
of  the  year  it  has  a  light  ochreous  or  buff  tinge.  In  the  former  it  fades  gradually 
into  the  white  of  the  chin,  while  on  ihe  latter  it  forms  a  well  defined  more  or 
less  triangular  white  patch.  The  line  of  demarcation  on  the  breast  is  always 
sharply  defined.  In  some  specimens  there  are  dusky  shaft  lines  along  the 
sides  quite  to  the  vent.  This  species  also  sometimes  exhibits  the  peculiar 
dusky  state  of  plumage  found  in  the  minutilla  and  Bairdii. 

Contrary  to  the  general  rule  among  the  Sandpipers,  there  has  been  very  little 
confusion  among  authors  with  regard  to  this  species,  and  its  synonomy  is  de- 
finite and  well  ascertained.  The  first  notice  of  it  by  art  American  author  was 
in  1823,  in  Long's  expedition  to  the  Rocky  Mountains,  where  it  was  named 
Pelidna  pectoralis,  by  Say.  This  specific  appellation,  certainly  a  most  appro- 
priate one,  is  that  which  has  been  in  general  use  among  authors,  the  bird  being 
as  usual  referred  to  both  Pelidna  and  Tringa.  It  is,  however,  very  different  from 
either,  and  is  in  every  essential  a  true  Actodromas.  "  Le  tringa  macule," 
Tringa  maculata  of  Vieillot,  (1819,)  unquestionably  refers  to  the  present  species, 
and  the  name  has  therefore  priority  over  pectoralis.  Lachtenstein,  in  1823, 
named  the  species  T.  campestris,  which  of  course  is  also  superseded  by  maculata 
Vieill.  Degland,  in  1849,  presented  the  bird  as  Tringa  dominicensis,  the  name 
being  derived  from  the  T.  cinclus  dominicensis  of  Brisson,  (1760.)  This  author, 
however,  was  no  binomalist,  and  has  hence  no  claim  to  bestow  names  in  such 
a  system.  9 

ACTODROMAS    (HETEROPYGIA)    BONAPARTE:    (Schl.)    Cass. — Bonaparte's   Sand- 
piper. 

?  Scolopax pusilla,  Gmelin,  Syst.  Nat.  1788,  i.  663. 
Pelidna  cinclus,  var.  Say,  Long's  Exped.  1823,  i.  172. 
Tringa   Schinzii,  "  Brehm."  Bonaparte,  Syn.  1828,  (nee  Brehm.  quae  T.  alpina, 

var.  ?  fide  Gen.  Rep.)     Swainson.  F.  B.  A.  1831,  ii.  384.     Bonaparte,  Am. 

Orn.  1833,  iv.  69.     Nuttall,  Manual,  1834,  ii.  109.     Audubon,  Orn.  Biog, 
1861.] 


200  PROCEEDINGS    OP    THE    ACADEMY   OP 

1833,  iii.  529,  tab.  278  ;  id.  Synopsis  1839,  236  ;  id.  Birds  Amer.  1842,  v. 
275.  Macgillivray,  Man.  Brit.  Orn.  1842,  ii.  72.  Giraud,  Birds  L.  I.  1844, 
241.  Dekay,  N.  Y.  F.  1844,  241,  tab.  84,  fig.  191.  Degland,  Ornith.  Europ. 
1849,  ii.  231.  Latnbeye,  Aves  Cubae,  1850,  98.  Woodhouse,  Sitgreave's 
Exped.  1853,  100.  Meyer,  Brit.  Birds,  1857,  v.  96. 

Pelidna  Schinzii,  Bonaparte,  Comp.  List.  1838,  50  ;  id.  Cat.  Met.  1842,  60. 
Tringa  fionapartei,  Schlegel,  Rev.  Grit.  Ois.  Eur.  1844,  89. 
Tringa  (Actodromas)  Bonapartei,  Cassin,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  722. 

Sp.  char.  Bill  quite  stout,  moderately  long,  equal  to  the  head  or  tarsus,  the 
tip  somewhat  expanded.  Grooves  on  both  mandibles  long  and  deep.  Feathers 
extending  on  the  lower  mandible  but  little  beyond  those  on  the  upper.  Wings 
long,  pointed,  first  primary  decidedly  longest ;  tertials  long,  narrow  and  flowing. 
Tail  moderate,  quite  deeply  doubly  ernarginate,  the  central  feathers  somewhat 
pointed  and  considerably  projecting.  Tarsus  rather  longer  than  the  middle  toe. 
Toes  long,  slender  and  slightly  margined.  Adult  in  breeding  plumage. — Crown 
and  upper  parts  generally  light  brownish  ash,  each  feather  with  a  large  field  of 
dusky  towards  its  end,  and  on  the  crown  and  middle  of  the  back  edged  with 
light  yellowish  red,- deepening  into  bright  sienna  on  the  scapulars.  Lesser 
wing  coverts  dark  brownish  ash,  fading  into  light  ashy  on  the  edges,  and  with 
shaft  lines  of  blackish.  Secondaries  and  greater  coverts  light  greyish  ash, 
edged  and  tipped  with  white.  Tertials  very  dark  brownish  ash,  fading  into 
light  ashy  on  the  edges.  Primaries  deep  dusky,  their  shafts  white  in  the  cen- 
tral portions,  and  the  innermost  edged  with  white.  Rump  brownish  black. 
Upper  tail  coverts  white,  their  outer  series  with  sagittate  spots  of  dusky.  Cen- 
tral tail  feathers  deep  brownish  black,  the  rest  very  light  greyish  ash,  broadly 
edged  and  tipped  with  white.  Jugulum  and  breast  with  a  scarcely  appreciable 
wash  of  very  light  ashy,  with  very  numerous,  distinct,  linear-oblong  streaks  of 
dusky  brown  ;  these  extend  as  minute  dots  nearly  or  quite  to  the  bill,  and  as 
narrow  shaft  lines,  along  the  sides  to  the  vent.  Rest  of  under  parts  white,  im- 
maculate. Lower  mandible  flesh  colored  for  half  its  length  ;  rest  of  bill,  with 
the  legs  and  feet,  black.  Young  in  August. — Upper  parts  a  nearly  uniform  dark 
ash,  the  black  of  the  adults  showing  at  intervals,  but  principally  on  the  scapu- 
lars, where  also  the  reddish  margins  of  the  feathers  are  apparent.  Jugulum 
and  sides  under  the  wings  with  an  ashy  suffusion,  more  conspicuous  than  in  the 
adult,  but  much  more  restricted,  and  the  streaks  more  obsolete  and  indistinct. 
Central  pair  of  upper  tail  coverts  usually  dusky.  Other  parts  as  in  the  adult. 

Length  7-5,  extent  15,  wing  4-8  inches.  Bill,  tarsus  and  middle  toe  rather 
less  than  one  inch. 

Habitat. — North  America,  east  of  the  Rocky  Mountains.     Europe. 

The  preceding  diagnosis  would  .characterize  the  species  sufficiently  well  for 
all  ordinary  purposes ;  but  in  view  of  the  great  confusion  which  exists  among 
authors,  most  of  whom  refer  it  to  a  very  different  bird,  a  somewhat  extended 
account  of  its  markings  and  variations  appears  necessary.  A  very  perfect  male, 
in  breeding  plumage,  from  Great  Slave  Lake,  and  an  immature  specimen  of  the 
same  sex,  obtained  in  Labrador  during  the  month  of  July,  are  considered  as 
respectively  representing  the  adult  and  young,  and  taken  as  standards  of  com- 
parison. 

Adult. — The  bill,  which  is  quite  stout,  and  somewhat  expanded  at  the  tip, 
rather  less  than  an^nch  in  length,  and  about  equal  to  the  head  or  tarsus.  It 
is  pretty  constant,  the  difference  in  length  between  the  longest  and  shortest 
billed  specimens  before  me  not  exceeding  the  tenth  of  an  inch.  The  lower 
mandible  is  flesh-colored  for  nearly  half  its  length.  The  feathers  extend  on  the 
side  of  the  lower  mandible  but  little  if  any  beyond  those  on  the  upper,  and  their 
encroachment  between  the  rami  is  not  great.  There  is  a  white  stripe  over  the 
eye,  and  a  dusky  one  between  the  eye  and  nostrils,  but  both  are  very  illy  de- 
fined. The  general  color  of  the  upper  parts  is  a  light  brownish  ash  ;  but  on 
the  back  the  feathers  have  such  large  blackish  central  fields,  and  so  conspicu- 

[July, 


NATURAL   SCIENCES    OF   PHILADELPHIA.  201 

ously  reddish  margins,  that  the  original  color  is  seen  only  on  the  rather  broad 
tips  of  the  feathers.  On  the  scapulars  the  reddish  deepens  into  bright  sienna, 
which  borders  the  feathers  evenly,  showing  little  or  no  disposition  towards  the 
scolloping  so  conspicuous  in  Bairdii  and  minutilla.  Some  of  the  scapulars,  how- 
ever, are  simply  bordered  with  the  prevailing  ashy,  and  ail  are  tipped  with  it. 
The  long  narrow  tertials  are  sooty  brown,  fading  into  ashy  on  the  edges. 
The  secondaries  and  greater  coverts  are  greyish  ash,  the  former  much  the 
lighter,  both  edged  and  broadly  tipped  with  pure  white.  The  lesser  coverts  are 
dusky  brown,  edged  with  lighter.  The  primaries  are  dusky,  nearly  black  on 
their  outer  vanes  and  at  the  tips,  their  shafts  brownish  at  base,  gradually  fading 
into  pure  white,  which  again  darkens  with  black  at  the  tip.  The  innermost 
primaries  are  quite  conspicuously  edged  with  white.  The  rump  is  dark  sooty 
brown.  The  upper  tail  coverts  are  white,  the  outer  series  with  sagittate 
dusky  spots.  The  central  tail  feathers  are  sooty  black,  with  narrow  lighter 
margins  ;  the  rest  a  very  clear  light  ashy,  margined  and  tipped  with  pure  white. 
The  under  parts  are  white ;  the  throat,  jugulu.n  and  breast  with  a  scarcely  ap- 
preciable wash  of  very  light  ashy,  and  very  thickly  streaked  with  well  defined, 
narrow,  linear-oblong  marks  of  brownish  black.  These  streaks,  reduced  to 
their  minimum,  extend  as  minute  points  nearly  or  quite  to  the  bill,  and,  chiefly 
as  narrow  shaft  lines,  extend  along  the  sides  under- the  wings  to  the  tail  coverts, 
the  dusky  spots  on  the  upper  being  the  continuation  of  them.  The  other  under 
parts  are  pure  white  and  immaculate.  The  legs  and  feet  are  black. 

Young. — The  young  differs  very  materially  from  the  adult.  The  upper  parts 
generally  are  of  a  nearly  uniform  dark  greyish  ash,  the  feathers  with  scarcely 
lighter  margins.  The  black  central  fields  and  the  reddish  margins  soon  appear 
at  irregular  intervals,  giving  to  the  upper  parts  a  more  or  less  variegated  ap- 
pearance. The  reddish  is  seen  mostly  on  the  scapulars.  The  wings  and  wing 
coverts  are  exactly  like  those  of  the  adults,  in  this  respect  showing  a  remarka- 
ble deviation  from  the  usual  rule  among  the  species  of  this  genus,  where  an 
evidence  of  immaturity  is  to  be  found  in  the  light  ferruginous  edgings  of  all 
the  lesser  wing  coverts.*  The  central  pair  of  the  upper  tail  coverts  are  wholly 
dusky,  and,  in  addition  to  the  sagittate  spots  on  the  outer  series,  the  interme- 
diate ones  are  sometimes  marked  in  the  same  manner.  The  wash  on  the  jugu- 
lum  is  considerably  more  conspicuous  than  in  the  adult,  but  at  the  same  time 
it  is  much  more  restricted,  and  the  streaks  are  fewer  and  very  indistinct.  It 
extends,  however,  along  the  sides  much  as  in  the  adults.  This  state  of  plumage 
is  identical  with  that  exhibited  by  the  Tringa  alpina  at  the  same  age  in  all  re- 
spects, except  those  of  the  reddish  lesser  wing  coverts  and  black  upper  tail 
coverts  of  the  latter  species.  Though  the  adults  of  the  two  species  are  very 
different,  this  close  resemblance  of  the  young  was  probably  one  cause  of  the 
two  birds  being  confounded  by  American  writers.  Between  the  plumage  of  the 
adult  and  young,  as  characterized  above,  there  are  to  be  found  birds  of  every 
intermediate  stage.  A  specimen  shot  in  the  middle  of  August  has  already  the 
markings  of  adult  and  young  in  nearly  equal  proportions,  while  a  winter  speci- 
men agrees  in  almost  every  respect  with  the  adult  in  breeding  plumage  described 
above.  This  species  is  also  found  in  the  peculiar  dusky  state  of  plumage,  where 
all  the  features  are  very  dark  and  scarcely  relieved  by  ashy  or  reddish  margins, 
already  adverted  to  in  the  case  of  Actodromas  maculala,  Bairdii  and  minutilla. 
It  is  most  probable  that  all  the  species  of  the  genus  are  liable  to  this  curious 
variation. 

The  relationships  of  this  species  are  decidedly  closest  with  the  A.  Cooperi, 
both  having  clearly  the  same  form,  and  the  pattern  of  coloration  being  very 
similar.  The  greatly  superior  size,  however,  of  the  latter,  independently  of  the 
variegated  upper  tail  coverts,  different  character  of  the  spots  beneath,  and  other 

*  The  same  feature  is  seen  in  Pelidna  alpina  and  Americana,  a  circumstance  which 
would  seem  to  indicate  that  the  two  genera  are  closely  allied,  as  is  indeed  the  case. 

1861.] 


202  PROCEEDINGS  OF  THE  ACADEMY  OP 

features,  at  once  separates  it  without  need  of  a  more  extended  comparison.  The 
larger  size,  pectoral  wash,  and  black  rump  and  upper  tail  coverts  of  A.  maculata, 
at  once  distinguishes  it,  while  the  very  diminutive  proportions  of  A.  minutilla 
render  comparison  equally  unnecessary.  Its  relationships  to  the  A.  Bairdii 
have  already  been  discussed. 

It  is  a  little  extraordinary  that  with  regard  to  so  marked  and  well  character- 
ized a  Sandpiper  as  the  present,  there  should  have  arisen  the  confusion  which 
until  recently  has  prevailed  among  authors,  nearly  all  referring  it  to  a  very  dif- 
ferent bird.  To  use  the  apt  and  expressive  words  of  the  General  Report,  it  has 
been  ''sadly  misnamed  by  American  ornithologists."  When  in  mature  plumage 
it  bears  very  little  resemblance  to  the  Tringa  Schinzii,  Brehm.,  which,  according 
to  the  same  authority,  is  "  merely  a  smaller  variety,  or  perhaps  only  smaller 

specimens  of  the  common  Tringa  alpina  ."  This  grave  error  probably 

originated  from  two  causes :  first,  that  Say,  in  his  original  description  (the  first 
notice  of  the  bird  by  an  American  writer)  designates  it  as  Pelidna  cinclus,  var.  ; 
and  secondly,  that  though  the  adults  are  as  different  as  possible,  the  young  of 
the  two,  as  already  stated,  are  nearly  identical  in  plumage,  almost  the  only  dif- 
ference lying  in  the  proportions  of  the  bill  and  feet;  characters  which, 
though  important  and.  essential,  might  readily  be  overlooked  in  birds  of  this 
group,  in  which  the  colors  were  similar.  This  similarity  in  the  young  and 
great  difference  between  the  adults  of  the  present  species  and  the  Tringa  alpina, 
var.,  caused  Bonaparte,  in  his  American  Ornithology,  to  fall  into  a  curious 
error.  Under  the  head  of  Tringa  Schinzii,  Brehm.,  he  describes  the  present 
species  accurately,  properly  quoting  the  Pelidna  cinclus,  var.  of  Say  ;  yet  only 
the  description  of  what  he  considered  as  the  young  "  T.  Schinzii "  applies  to  the 
A.  Bonapartei.  For,  speaking  of  the  adult,  he  says  :  "  This  Sandpiper  is  well 
known  to  appear  in  a  summer  vesture  analogous  to  that  of  Tringa  alpina,  at  the 
same  season,  but  we  have  never  met  with  an  American  specimen  in  that  state  ;"  and 
further  on  he  describes  adult  European  specimens  as  having  "  the  breast  almost 
entirely  'of  a  jet  black  color,"  clearly  referring  to  the  so-called  Tringa  Schmzii, 
i.  <?.,  to  the  smaller  variety  of  the  T.  alpina.  Nuttall,  probably  following  Bona- 
parte, commits  precisely  the  same  mistake.  Audubon's  Tringa  Schinzii  is  un- 
doubtedly the  present  species,  though  the  measurements  given  are  rather  those 
of  A.  Bairdii ;  and,  for  reasons  stated  elsewhere,  I  am  inclined  to  think  that  his 
figure  of  the  male  was  taken  from  an  individual  in  the  peculiar  abnormal  dusky 
state  of  plumage  already  so  often  adverted  to.  The  descriptions  of  Tringa 
Schinzii  by  other  American  authors,  and  by  those  European  writers  quoted  in 
the  list  of  synonyms,  all  appear  to  refer  to  the  true  Bonapartei. 

The  description  by  Schlegel,  in  1844,  of  Tringa  Bonapartei,  unmistakeably 
points  to  the  present  species,  and,  as  it  is  the  first  distinctive  specific  appella- 
tion, must  be  employed.  Parzudaki,  in  his  Catalogue,  very  wrongly  gives  Bo- 
napartei, Sch.,  as  a  synonym  of  Pelidna  maculata,  (pectoralis  of  Say.)  Scolopax 
pusilla  of  Gmelin  is  in  all  probability  the  present  bird,  as  particular  mention  is 
made  of  the  white  upper  tail  coverts  ;  but  from  the  brevity  of  the  description, 
it  is  impossible  to  determine  this  point  satisfactorily. 

ACTODROMAS  (HsTEROPYGiA)  CoopERi  (Baird)  Coues. — Cooper's  Sandpiper. 
Tringa  Cooperi,  Baird,  Gen.  Rep.  1858,  716. 

Sp.  char.  Largest  of  the  group.  Bill  considerably  longer  than  the  head, -ex- 
ceeding the  tarsus,  straight,  rather  stout,  tip  scarcely  expanded.  Feathers  ex- 
tending on  side  of  lower  mandible  scarcely  further  than  those  on  the  upper. 
Wings  long,  pointed,  first  primary  decidedly  longest ;  tertials  moderately  long 
and  rather  slender.  Tail  moderate,  slightly  but  decidedly  doubly  emarginate, 
the  central  feathers  projecting.  Tarsus  rather  longer  than  the  middle  toe  ; 
tibia  bare  for  half  the  length  of  the  tarsus  ;  toes  all  long,  slender  and  slightly 
margined.  Adult  in  spring. — Upper  parts  a  nearly  uniform  light  greyish  ash, 

[July, 


NATURAL   SCIENCES   OF  PHILADELPHIA.  203 

each  feather  with  a  central  brownish  black  field,  deepening  into  pure  black  on 
the  scapulars,  where  also  the  edgings  of  some  of  the  feathers  have  a  reddish 
tinge.  Tertials  sooty  brown,  fading  with  light  ashy  on  the  edges.  Secondaries 
and  greater  coverts  dark  greyish  ash,  edged  and  broadly  tipped  with"  white. 
Primaries  deep  dusky,  almost  black  on  the  outer  vanes  and  at  the  tips,  the  in- 
nermost edged  with  white ;  shafts  of  all  brown  at  base  and  black  at  tip,  the 
central  feathers  being  white.  Upper  tail  coverts  white,  with  sagittate  spots  of 
dusky.  Tail  feathers  ashy  brown,  the  central  pair  darkest.  Under  parts  white  ; 
the  jugulum,  breast,  and  sides  of  the  neck  with  a  slight  reddish  tinge,  and,  to- 
gether with  the  sides,  with  numerous  streaks  and  oval  spots  of  dusky,  which 
become  large  and  V-shaped  on  the  flanks. 

Length  (of  skin)  9-5  inches  ;  wing  5-75,  tail  2-80,  bill  above  1-23,  tarsus  1.14 
middle  toe  1. 

Habitat. — Long  Island. 

In  order  to  exhibit  more  fully  the  features  and  peculiarities  of  this  curious 
Sandpiper,  differing  in  many  essential  respects  from  any  other  described  as 
North  American,  the  following  additional  remarks  may  be  required,  that  we 
may  be  better  enabled  to  judge  of  its  relationships  and  affinities,  which  are  mat- 
ters of  some  uncertainty.  The  characters  are  taken  from  the  type  of  the 
species,  the  original  of  the  description  in  the  General  Report. 

The  bill  and  feet  though  rather  stout  for  an  Actodromas,  are  slender  in  com- 
parison with  Tringa.  The  tip  of  the  former  is  but  slightly  expanded,  and  rather 
obtuse.  The  grooves  in  both  mandibles  are  long  and  distinct,  that  of  the  lower 
being  narrow  but  deep.  The  position  of  the  nostrils  is  nearly  intermediate  be- 
tween Tringa  and  Actodromas.  The  nature  of  the  encroachment  of  the  feathers 
on  the  bill  is  identical  with  that  of  A.  Bonapartei,  and  very  different  from  that 
of  Tringa.  The  wings  are  long  and  pointed,  the  first  primary  much  the  longest, 
as  in  Tringa  canutus,  and  the  graduation  of  the  others  exactly  as  in  that  species. 
The  tertials  are  rather  long,  narrow,  and  flowing.  The  emargination  of 
the  tail,  though  not  great,  is  decided  ;  the  central  feathers  project  a  little  be- 
yond the  others,  but  are  not  much  darker  than  the  others ;  the  outer  pair  are 
next  in  length,  and  the  third  are  the  shortest.  The  legs  and  feet  are  long  and 
comparatively  slender.  The  tibise  are  long  and  much  denuded,  the  bare  por- 
tion being  nearly  two-thirds  the  tarsus.  The  latter  is  rather  shorter  than  the 
bill,  but  at  the  same  time  slightly  exceeds  the  middle  toe  and  claw.  The  toes 
are  all  long,  slender  and  slightly  margined,  and  the  hind  one  is  well  developed. 
The  coloration  of  the  upper  parts  is  very  different  from  that  of  T.  canutus,  and 
exceedingly  similar  to  that  of  A.  Bonapartei,  almost  the  only  difference  being  a 
rather  less  amount  of  reddish  on  the  back.  The  rump  and  upper  tail  coverts 
are  much  the  same  as  in  T.  canutus  being  white,  with  sagittate  spots  and  waved 
bars  of  dusky.  The  pattern,  and  colors  of  the  under  parts,  though  agreeing 
with  A.  Bonapartei  in  the  absence  of  a  decided  pectoral  wash,  are  yet  very  dif- 
ferent, the  spots  being  sparse,  and  extending  over  the  whole  breast,  instead  of 
being  very  numerous  and  confined  strictly  to  the  jugulum  and  sides.  In  this 
respect  it  approaches  the  young  Tringa  canutus  or  still  more  the  adult  Ereunetes 
pusillus,  the  similarity  being  heightened  by  the  slight  reddish  tinge  on  the 
jugulum. 

Having  thus  presented  the  chief  peculiarities  of  this  very  unique  Sandpiper, 
we  are  prepared  to  discuss  the  question  of  its  affinities.  "Were  the  size  and 
proportions  of  bill,  tarsus,  and  toes  the  same  as  in  the  A.  Bonapartri,  it  might 
almost  be  a  question  whether  it  were  not  an  accidental  variety  of  that  species  ; 
but  the  discrepancies  in  these  particulars  are  too  great  to  admit  the  doubt.  The 
differences  from  all  other  species  are  sufficiently  obvious.  Granting,  then,  that 
it  is  a  distinct  bird,  it  only  remains  to  settle  the  question  of  its  generic  relation- 
ships; which,  as  it  presents  a  most  remarkable  combination  of  the  characters 
of  both  Tringa  and  Actodromas,  is  a  matter  of  some  uncertainty.  We  cannot 
but  think,  however,  that  all  the  most  important  characters  of  the  bird  incline 
1861.] 


204  PROCEEDINGS   OP   THE  ACADEMY  OP 

towards  Actodromas,  rather  than  to  Tringa,  and  that  A.  Bonapartei  is  its  nearest 
ally.  While  the  actual  proportions  of  the  bill,  tarsus,  and  toe  of  Tringa  are 
preserved,  the  difference  in  length  of  the  bill  over  the  tarsus,  and  of  the  latter 
over  the  middle  toe,  is  very  trifling,  and  in  the  latter  case,  moreover,  it  is  pro- 
duced by  a  slight  lengthening  of  the  tarsus  rather  than  by  any  shortening  or 
stoutening  of  the  toes,  which  are  long,  slender,  and  slightly  margined  as  in 
Actodromas  proper.  The  claws  are  all  long,  slender,  and  slightly  curved,  while 
exactly  the  reverse  is  the  case  with  Tringa.  The  tibiae  are  bare  for  a  consider- 
ably greater  extent,  and  the  tibial  feathers  short.  In  the  adults  of  Tringa  these 
reach  nearly  to  the  joint.  In  the  slight  (though  decided)  double  emargination 
of  the  tail,  with  its  central  feathers,  but  little  different  from  the  lateral,  and  in 
the  pattern  of  the  rump  and  upper  tail  coverts,  there  is  shown  a  near  approach 
to  Tringa.  The  primaries  are  as  in  Tringa,  but  the  elongated  tertials  are  those 
of  Actodromas.  The  stoutness  of  the  bill  and  the  position  of  the  nostrils,  are 
intermediate  between  the  two,  but  the  encroachment  of  the  feathers  is  exactly 
that  of  A.  Bonapartei.  The  coloration  of  the  upper  parts,  except  of  the  rump, 
is  almost  identical  with  that  of  Bonapartei,  and  that  of  the  lower  much  nearer 
to  it  than  to  the  adult  T.  canutus. 

From  the  above  considerations,  eppecially  in  reference  to  the  indications  af- 
forded by  the  legs,  always  important  among  the  Tringece,  we  cannot  but  con- 
clude that  the  bird  is  Actodromas,  rather  than  a  true  Tringa.  Still  we  should 
hardly  have  ventured  to  change  it  from  the  position  assigned  by  such  high  au- 
thority, had  not  Prof.  Baird,  in  an  attentive  reexamination  of  the  characters 
of  the  bird,  acquiesced  in  our  views,  and  expressed  his  entire  approval  of  the 
course  pursued. 

In  view  of  the  many  peculiarities  presented,  it  might  perhaps  have  been  ad- 
visable to  consider  the  present  bird,  instead  of  the  A.  Bonapartei  as  typical  of 
Heteropygia.  But  as  the  two  are  very  closely  allied,  and  both  subgenerically 
distinct  from  Actodromas  proper,  we  have  preferred  to  give  the  common  and 
well  known  bird  as  the  type. 

The  subject  of  the  present  article,  is,  with  a  single  exception,  we  believe,  the 
ouly  known  specimen  of  this  excessively  rare  species.  It  is  fortunately  adult, 
having  been  taken  in  May.  The  changes  of  plumage  it  undergoes,  and  the 
extent  of  the  variation  to  which  it  is  subject,  cannot  therefore  be  given.  They 
are,  however,  in  all  probability  parallel  with  those  of  A.  Bonapartei. 

"  It  is  possible  that  this  species  may  have  been  previously  indicated  under 
some  of  the  names  quoted  as  synonyms,  such  as  Tringa  noveboracensis,  Ac., 
although,  from  the  brevity  of  the  descriptions,  it  is  impossible  to  determine 
this  point  satisfactorily." — (BAIRD.) 

Having  thus  passed  in  review  the  species  of  Tringece  well  ascertained  to  in- 
habit North  America,  it  may  be  well  to  notice  those  attributed  by  authors  to 
that  country.  As  far  as  I  am  able  to  ascertain  they  are  the  following  : 

ACTODROMAS  MINDTA  Kaup. 

Tringa pusilla,  Meyer.     (Nee  Linn.  ;  nee  Bechst. ;  nee  Wils.) 
Tringa  minuta,  Leisler.     Swainson,  F.  B.   A.   1831,  ii.  385.     Nuttall,  Manual, 
1834,  ii.  119. 

It  is  not  impossible  that  this  species  should  occur  in  North  America,  or  that 
there  should  exist  a  "  Pigmy"  Sandpiper  distinct  both  from  the  A.  minutilla 
and  the  European  species.  Observation,  however,  does  not  as  yet  warrant  the 
belief  that  such  is  the  case. 

ACTODROMAS  TEMMINCKII  Bon. 
Tringa  pusilla,  Bechstein.     (Nee  Linn. ;  nee  Meyer ;  nee  Wils.) 


NATURAL   SCIENCES   OP  PHILADELPHIA.  205 

Tringa  Temminckii,  Leisler. 

Leimoniles  Temmincku,  Kaup. 

Tringa  pusilla,   'Linn."  Nuttall,  Man.  ii.  1824,  117.    (Nee  Linn.) 

This  species,  a  specimen  of  which  we  have  never  had  the  pleasure  of  ex- 
amining, is  given  by  Nuttall  as  an  inhabitant  of  North  America,  though  in  all 
probability  upon  insufficient  or  erroneous  data. 

LlMICOLA   PYQM^IA,  Koch. 

Numenius pygmceus,  Latham. 

Tringa  elorioidei,,  Vieillot,  fide  Parzudaki. 

Tringa  platyrhyncha,  Temminck.     Nuttall,  Man.  1834,  ii.  114. 

This  marked  and  very  curious  Sandpiper  is  stated  by  Nuttall  to  be  "of  very- 
rare  occurrence  in  the  United  States."  I  have  never  seen  an  American  speci- 
men, and  its  existence  in  that  country  must  be  considered  as  extremely 
doubtful. 

In  addition  to  the  above,  nearly  all  the  hort-billed  species  of  Totanince  were 
considered  by  the  older  authors  as  TringecR.  Tringa  rufescens,  Vieill.  of  authors, 
though  given  as  a  Tringa  as  late  as  1842,  by  Audubon,  is  in  all  essentials  a 
true  Tatler,  and  very  closely  related  to  Actiturus,  Bonaparte. 


14  DAY  USE 

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HtAYl  H957 


MAY  21 


